Two recent polls highlight the burden that the high cost of health care imposes on Americans. Gallup reported at the end of last month that 61% of those surveyed expressed a great deal of concern about the affordability and accessibility of health care, top among domestic issues and 10 percentage points ahead of the runner-up, the state of the economy. An additional 23% said they worry a fair amount about health care.
The results reinforce the significance of a previous Gallup study conducted in conjunction with West Health that found that 33% of the adult population, or 82 million people, are reducing spending on other basic living expenses, including food, to meet their health care needs. Hurt by higher insurance costs, lower subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, and steep Medicaid cuts, those individuals have been forced to take such steps as extending prescriptions, borrowing money and forgoing some meals.
The poll results add to the preponderance of evidence that points to the urgent need to restructure the health care system, making it more affordable and ensuring its long-term viability. Community pharmacy can be an important contributor to the reform process. With stores located within five miles of some 90% of the U.S. population, the sector offers unrivaled accessibility, providing life-saving medications, expert advice on their proper use and such ancillary services as immunizations.
Proof of pharmacy’s potential to elevate public health emerged during the COVID pandemic. After halting attempts by state and local governments to vaccinate large numbers of people, pharmacy was allowed to intervene and administered hundreds of millions of COVID vaccinations, helping pave the way for the country to get back to normal. Absent pharmacy’s infrastructure and the contributions of the professionals who staff the stores, pandemic lockdowns would no doubt have been prolonged.
Memory often fades quickly, and today the pharmacy infrastructure is under threat. Falling reimbursements and decreasing customer traffic at the front end of drug stores forced the closure of over 2,000 locations last year, with no end to that trajectory in sight. Policy makers and stakeholders must reverse the trend if they don’t want to see an essential building block in a reformed health care system seriously damaged.
Legislative and regulatory changes are needed to stabilize the financial underpinnings of the industry and allow pharmacists to do more to support the health and wellness of patients. Members of the profession are eager to help monitor patients with chronic conditions, test for routine ailments and, where appropriate, prescribe medications. Expanding the role of pharmacists would improve access to health care for people in the communities where they live and work, and, at the same time, help alleviate the shortage of primary care doctors and other providers.
The entire system would benefit from directing consumers to the lowest-cost point of care. As pharmacy has demonstrated with COVID shots and immunizations for flu, shingles and other conditions, it is able to efficiently deliver quality care at scale, saving time and money for patients and payers.
