Rochester Pharmacy Access Coalition Uniting to Fill Gaps from Pharmacy Closures
A collection of hospitals in Rochester, New York, have teamed up to create better access to prescription drugs and combat the city’s pharmacy desert issue.
The 4 largest health systems in Rochester—Jordan Health, Rochester Regional Health, Trillium Health, and the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC)—teamed up to establish the Rochester Pharmacy Access Coalition (RPAC) in response to 5 Walgreens recently shutting their doors.1 With recent closures defining areas in Rochester as pharmacy deserts, the RPAC is stepping up to fight back against a pharmacy industry that is consistently struggling.
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans announced the establishment of the RPAC on Tuesday, telling the community members impacted by Walgreens shutdowns that “We will no longer have a pharmacy desert.”2 With the opening of Highland Pharmacy at Brooks Landing and the expansion of pharmacy services at St. Mary’s Apothecary, the RPAC’s efforts have already returned to filling hundreds, if not thousands, of prescriptions a day. These services will also be expanded for the general public, not just patients affiliated with any of the 4 health systems.1
University of Rochester Medical Center | image credit: Spiroview Inc. / stock.adobe.com
“Health providers in our coalition do not compete to grow volume prescriptions we fill. Instead, we collaborate to fill gaps as retail pharmacies in many neighborhoods close due to economics,” said Curtis Haas, PharmD, Chief Pharmacy Officer at URMC. Shedding light on top pharmacy brands closing a concerning number of stores as of late, Haas touched on how health systems might be better equipped to address the pharmacy desert issue compared with major corporations like CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid.
READ MORE: Pharmacy Deserts Prominent in Areas of High Social Vulnerability
According to the Oxford Academic Journal, 4.7% of the US population—about 15.8 million people—lives in pharmacy deserts, which are geographical locations where the average distance to the closest pharmacy is greater than the predetermined threshold for either urban, rural, or suburban locales. In urban areas, pharmacy deserts are established when the nearest pharmacy is more than 1 mile away, more than 2 miles for suburban areas, and more than 10 miles for urban areas.2
The Rochester health systems’ coalition is almost a direct response to recent closures of name-brand pharmacies, which are owed to declining profitability and reimbursement at the pharmacy counter as well as shifting consumer habits amidst an ongoing technological revolution. The struggling pharmacy industry has since lobbied that Congress and other federal legislative vehicles step in to alleviate the ongoing pressures facing the industry.
While pharmacists and pharmacy advocate groups work to enact overarching change within a struggling industry, in the meantime, health care providers, like those making up the RPAC, are working tirelessly to bring medications to their community. Prioritizing patient care over profits, Rochester health officials are making a statement with the creation of the RPAC.
“In this moment of a national chain’s disinvestment, community leaders in Rochester stepped forward, as they have so many times before,” said Mayor Evans. “Rather than viewing the closure as a setback, they saw it as an opportunity to rally together, leveraging their collective vision and resilience.”
Indeed, the coalition’s effort has already garnered success at Highland Pharmacy at Brooks Landing. After announcing its opening at the beginning of last month,3 the URMC team has been able to fill over 275 daily prescriptions and offer prescription delivery services.2
“Residents in the South District need access to medicine and other necessities, and I’m thrilled that the University of Rochester is opening a new pharmacy that will help constituents in my district bridge the gap to the medicine and care they deserve,” said LaShay Harris, Rochester City Council Vice President (South District).3 “Following the loss of pharmacy options in the 19th Ward in recent years, I’m proud to see one of our city’s great institutions is in alignment with our city’s mission to create safer neighborhoods, quality housing, and equitable access to opportunity for all Rochesterians.”
While the pharmacy industry as a whole continues to find ways to adapt within a struggling environment, players in the pharmaceutical supply chain are stepping up to deliver the necessary care that patients nationwide deserve. The RPAC may serve as a precedent for state governments attempting to address the issue of pharmacy deserts.
“We’re not waiting for anybody else to come save us. We’re saving ourselves,” concluded Evans.2
READ MORE: Over Half of US Population Concerned About Prescription Drug Access, Prices
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