More US Pharmacies Closed Than Opened In 2018–21; Independent Pharmacies, Those In Black, Latinx Communities Most At Risk
Health Affairs December 1, 2024
Abstract
In recent years, federal and state policy makers have expressed concern about retail pharmacy closures throughout the US. However, there is a dearth of timely information on the extent of such closures. We linked data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs on all US retail pharmacies to county-level data from the National Center for Health Statistics and ZIP Code Tabulation Area data from the American Community Survey to determine the number and percentage of pharmacy closures during the period 2010–21; identify pharmacy, neighborhood, and market characteristics associated with pharmacy closure; and estimate the risk for closure...