The New York Times reported Saturday that due to nearly 30% of pharmacies closing between 2010 and 2021, many seniors across the United States have no local access to their prescription drugs, leaving them in a "pharmacy desert."
According to The Times, a pharmacy desert is defined as living more than ten miles away from a pharmacy in a rural area, two miles away for suburban living, and one mile away in an urban environment.
The closures have created challenges for seniors, who are among the most frequent users of prescription drugs. Nearly 90% of adults 65 and older took at least one prescription drug last year; almost 60% relied on four or more.
According to Dr. Dima Qato, the director of the medicines and public health program at the University of Southern California, the reason why so many pharmacies have closed is due to "a lot of mergers and vertical integration in the pharmacy industry and low reimbursement rates through Medicare Part D."
Efforts to address pharmacy deserts have included calls for policy changes, such as eliminating preferred pharmacy networks in Medicare Part D and offering government subsidies to support rural and independent pharmacies.
"You either let them die, or you subsidize them with taxpayer money," said Dr. Ge Bai, a health policy and management researcher at Johns Hopkins. "It will be expensive to do" but may halt pharmacy deserts.
Nick Koutsobinas ✉
Nick Koutsobinas, a Newsmax writer, has years of news reporting experience. A graduate from Missouri State University’s philosophy program, he focuses on exposing corruption and censorship.
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