Millions of Americans have experienced the following at a CVS: You buy one pack of gum, and the register ends up printing out a two-foot-long receipt filled with coupons.
Don’t worry though: Parent company CVS Health (CVS) is finally in on the joke. Helena Foulkes, president of CVS/pharmacy, confirmed on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live that the retailer would give its 70 million ExtraCare Rewards members the option for digital receipts starting in early June. Those customers can opt out of receiving paper receipts for all in-store purchases when completing their transactions at the chain’s 7,900 retail locations.
CVS promises that the opt-in for digital will only need to occur once.
Kimmel teased that he has long campaigned for CVS to eliminate the receipts. He took credit for the retailer’s action as part of his bid to run for vice president this year, part of a running gag that kicked off earlier this month.
CVS Pres Helena Foulkes & future VP @JimmyKimmel announce digital receipts! Https://t.co/5lFnPenaFM#ReceiptYouLaterpic.twitter.com/4RyZy3tQbI
— CVS Pharmacy (@cvspharmacy) May 22, 2016
“Thanks to you Jimmy, we knew our customers were very concerned about the length of our receipts,” Foulkes said on the show. In a prepared statement on Monday, Foulkes said that while many shoppers enjoy the coupons and special offers, many wanted a paperless option. Foulkes, who ranked No. 14 on Coins2Day‘s Most Powerful Woman list, has been credited for transforming the pharmacy retailer into a health care giant.
CVS also added the digital coupons can be redeemed by using a smartphone, tablet, or computer. Customers can also request a paper copy of a receipt at the time of purchase even if they’ve opted out.