Statement from the Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association
June 17, 2025
The Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association (PPA) remains deeply concerned regarding the ongoing closures of both community and chain pharmacies across the Commonwealth.
Pharmacists are not medication dispensers; they are healthcare providers that provide critical services such as immunizations, medication counseling, chronic disease management and urgent care interventions. When a pharmacy closes, patients lose a trusted, accessible healthcare provider in their community. These closures create a public health threat by the emergence of pharmacy deserts (areas where patients face significant barriers to accessing essential pharmacy services).
The creation of pharmacy deserts disproportionately affects rural communities, underserved urban neighborhoods, older adults and patients with limited transportation options. This growing gap in access increases the risk of medication nonadherence, delays in treatment and worse health outcomes that place an additional strain on already overburdened healthcare systems.
The Pennsylvania Pharmacists Association calls on the administration, state and federal policymakers, health insurers and industry stakeholders to recognize the essential role pharmacists play in community health promotion and wellness and to take urgent action to protect and preserve access to pharmacist services. We urge reforms to reimbursement models for PA Medicaid, commercial plans and Medicare, increased support for independent and rural pharmacies and a collaborative approach to ensure that no Pennsylvanian is left without the pharmacy care services they need and deserve.
