Paying with your phone is a good practice, and reduces touch points at the register.  Starbucks has a very good payment app.
 
The bigger problem is the 'condiments bar' where you get the sugar, creamers, and spices.  If everyone is touching those, then it becomes an easy place to spread a virus.  Its not realistic for a flood of people to be using hand sanitizer over and over again, either.  So the solution is to have the Barista do it.  The Barista has all of those items, and is the only person touching them. 
 
Just explain what you want, when you order your drink and you will get a great tasting coffee, and will have protected yourself, too!
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Starbucks has been accused of underfilling their drinks like Latte's, and in another lawsuit they are accused of putting too much ice in iced drinks, resulting in less coffee than people expect.
 
Here is a link to a story about the class-action lawsuit about underfilling drinks, and here is a link about the lawsuit accusing Starbucks of using too much ice in their iced drinks.

While I am no longer a fan of Starbucks (weakened rewards program, too little Fair-Trade coffee, too much resource impact with energy usage and landfill waste, far too much sugar in their food, and more) - I personally feel that they do not underfill drinks.  It makes no sense for the to do that, and anger people.  Also they are good at listening to custom orders so for example if someone wants less foam, you just have to ask.

For Latte's, they use the full shots of espresso so underfilling would mean what?  Too little milk?   If that were consistently done, then the drinks would taste too strong - but you don't hear people saying that.  

The foam in a Latte or Cappuccino will settle if you don't drink it right away.  To some that might appear to be underfilling, but it is just settling - and will happen with such drinks from any vendor.

But now, instead of 12 points, you need 125 points to get a free item.  This makes no sense at all.  Starbucks thinks that all they have to do is explain the program over and over - which just shows how much they are missing the point.

Starbucks has lost touch with its customers.

Whomever conceived of this program does not understand why the Starbucks Rewards was so popular in the first place.   Whomever signed off on this is more interested in profits, than in the needs and wants of the customers.

Yes, it is 'easier' to get Stars, but that does not make up for how badly this new program has been conceived.  As a drip-coffee drinker, I feel that Starbucks has cast me aside.  It appears that Starbucks only cares about the big spenders; people who buy Latte's and sandwiches all at once.   In fact right on Starbucks site, on their own blog post that announced the new program, comments are overwhelmingly negative.  We also wrote a Linkedin Article on this.   People need to know; it is also instructive, from a business perspective - why take  something that is so good, and change it that much?

I  have talked to both customers and employees; everyone person I talked to is unhappy about these changes, and there are many articles online (here is one, and here is another, at Fortune.com, titled "Customers are Furious with Starbucks' New Rewards Program").

If you think about it, no one really needs to go to Starbucks.

So I am cancelling my account.  I have been a loyal customer for many years, and have spent a lot of money at Starbucks - something that they apparently do not care about at all.  i will lose my 'Gold' status, and free refills.  But it won't matter since I will be going there FAR less.  In fact, here is a picture of my last earned Reward at Starbucks:
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I want to end this blog post by saying, that there are a number of things that I am unhappy about with Starbucks - not just the Rewards Program.  But in the past I never criticized Starbucks, since I am a customer and I try to be positive.  But there are just too many problems there now.  I will be exploring some of these, in future blog posts.    I believe that Starbucks is losing its 'cool' factor, and some of the reasons - like this badly-conceived Rewards Program - show that Starbucks is doing it to itself.