Jonah Lewis
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Fears of ‘pharmacy deserts’ have been stoked in recent months, prompting many pharmacy customers to panic.
According to ABC News, the recent Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Rite Aid has done the brunt of the damage, which has been predicted to primarily affect low income areas with majority Black and Latino populations.
According to Reuters, Rite Aid, which controls over 2,000 stores and over $7 billion in assets, was faced with many lawsuits that said that the company overprescribed opioids. The company denied these allegations, according to the New York Times.
The drug store chain, which was once the nation’s largest, has been no stranger to legal action in the past. According to The New York Times, the company was fraught with a securities and accounting fraud case that saw their top executives indicted.
The concept of ‘pharmacy deserts’ is like food deserts, which explains the lack of nutritious food for sale or within reach in low-income areas.
ABC News defines a pharmacy desert as a low-income area without a pharmacy within half a mile, outside walking distance for those without a car.
The Baltimore Watchdog contacted Rite Aid pharmacy patrons[PG1] to see how pharmacy decline would affect consumers.
“I feel like for everybody, it’ll make a big difference, just off the fact that everybody goes to Rite Aid,” said Joseph Bryant, a customer at the Rite Aid on Clifton Ave. “I think the next pharmacy is a couple of miles up the street, back up Liberty.”
The panic of a declining market for drug stores has risen due to the advent of alternatives, such as mail delivery services like Hims and Hers and Roman, which prescribe and deliver medication to a patient’s door.
According to the Pocono Record, these sites charge far more than what would be expected at a pharmacy, often at a sixfold markup. This makes the generic prescriptions for medications like Prozac and Zoloft inaccessible to low-income demographics.
These companies operate on a cash basis, outside insurance, which decreases drug prices for consumers.
The accessibility of these sites is a main draw, as the affordability of their consultations appeals to those who do not have insurance.