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Drugstore pharmacies have long been a staple in neighborhoods across the country, especially in low-income areas. But mass closures of drugstore chains such as CVS and Walgreens threaten access to medical care that may be otherwise inaccessible for many Americans.

Amid settlement payouts in the wake of the opioid crisis, several pharmacy chains are facing mass closures; in October, Rite Aid filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced the closure of more than 150 stores.

But the opioid crisis isn’t the only threat to drugstore pharmacies like Rite Aid. So why is this happening?

If you ask employees of these chains, they would inform you of the widespread discontent among workers. In a New York Times article, Bled Tanoe, a former employee of Walgreens, said employees have been encouraged to “work faster and work with less help.” Drugstore pharmacies across the country are understaffed and make disproportionate demands of their employees — demands that aren’t appropriately compensated.

Increasingly, more and more employees are fed up with such conditions. CVS and Walgreens workers organized a three-day long walkout via social media, dubbed “Pharmageddon,” to protest their working conditions.

“Pharmageddon” occurred just weeks after an Oct. 9 work stoppage in which thousands of Walgreens employees protested working conditions. Employees have protested working conditions and understaffing that they believe puts patients at risk and could ultimately lead to them losing their licenses.

Outside of the internal issues drugstores are facing, they are also struggling to compete with the supercenters, grocery stores and online retailers that present more enticing options for a consumer, especially as they improve their services, such as offering pharmaceutical services themselves.

The current threat to drugstores, and consequently the pharmacies they provide, is startling. The existence of these locations can be necessary to rural and lower-income areas. For many, drugstore pharmacies act as more than just an accessible form of healthcare; they can also be a place to get food, toiletries and other daily necessities.

The 2021 Medication Access Report demonstrated that one in five patients surveyed have relied more on their pharmacists to explain healthcare costs and prescription benefits than their primary care physicians, with 65 percent of patients reported experiencing worsening financial hardships.

Syracuse is among the communities that will likely be impacted by these changes. According to a recent study, Syracuse has some of the highest instances of medical debt among cities in New York, with an estimate that one in four adults struggle to pay medical bills. Local drugstore pharmacies could, for many, be the most affordable form of healthcare.

Additionally, areas in and around Syracuse have lacking doctors per capita numbers. Cayuga County, often cited as part of the greater Syracuse area, has a population per primary care doctor ratio of 3,583:1 — the New York state average is 1,199:1.

It is therefore increasingly important to give business to drugstores in your local area while also advocating for better treatment of employees and supporting any protests they may stage. Drugstores act as a more convenient connection to healthcare, supporting many neighborhoods. Closures en masse could represent a threat to that accessibility that will send shockwaves throughout many communities, proving just how integral the services offered are.

Summer Brannan Taylor is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences

Published on November 30, 2023 at 1:18 am