<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0WKY7K_1EXDofIP00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0WKY7K_1EXDofIP00" width="1200" height="600" >(WDBJ) - Greever’s Drug Store and the town of Chilhowie go way back. And owner Brent Foster has the receipts.“Hundredth anniversary of the town, we were the oldest active business,” Foster said during a tour of his shop. “How does that make you feel?” we asked. “Honored to be part of it,” he said.Brent Foster’s father John joined the business in the early 1960s. His son Zac is now behind the counter. And his granddaughter has expressed interest in following their lead.But the President of the Virginia Pharmacy Association also knows times are tough for many of Virginia’s independent pharmacies.“We really need help,” Foster told WDBJ7. “And it can’t go on this way. Every week that we don’t get something done, there’s the possibility of more pharmacies closing.”For several years, the number of community pharmacies in Virginia has declined, from 1,545 in 2019 to 1.402 in 2025.Last October, the Virginia Board of Health passed a resolution recognizing pharmacy deserts – areas with limited or no access to community pharmacies - as a threat to public health.A major part of the problem, Virginia pharmacists say, are the reimbursements they receive through Pharmacy Benefit Managers, companies that act as a middleman between insurance companies and independent pharmacies.Tim Lucas is the owner of DownHome Pharmacy in Vinton. During a visit earlier this year, he offered an example as he filled a prescription for the diabetes drug Trulicity.“Last month it was $921 and the insurance company reimbursed me $919. So for the privilege of filling that one, I get to lose $2,” he said. “This month, the exact same prescription now costs $981 and the insurance company still reimbursed me $919 and so I get to lose $62.” And when the reimbursement doesn’t cover the cost, Lucas said it creates a dilemma. “Do I give this product to the patient because she needs it or do I lose $62,” he said. “Or do I say, I’m sorry, I can’t get that product for that price? We certainly are going to be filling this for this patient, but this is the type of problem that all pharmacies are running into.” State lawmakers have taken aim at the issue. This year, the General Assembly passed legislation to provide more transparency, accountability and oversight in the relationship between insurance companies, pharmacy benefit managers and independent pharmacies. But the main provisions of the bill don’t take effect until the middle of next year. And pharmacists say it’s too early to tell what kind of impact the legislation might have.Students and faculty are paying attention at Appalachian College of Pharmacy in Buchanan County.On a recent visit to the institution, Dr. Susan Mayhew gave us a tour of the labs and classrooms.The school’s Provost and Dean said ACP has graduated more than 1,100 students since it opened in 2005, and placed about half of them in Appalachian communities.In today’s environment, Mayhew said pharmacists must become more entrepreneurial, providing services beyond dispensing medications.“So the people who are successful in independent pharmacies are the ones who are thinking outside the box,” Mayhew said in an interview. “They’re offering innovative services, medication therapy management, special diabetes fittings, vaccination programs. They’re offering unique services that some of the other pharmacies can’t. And that’s a real opportunity.”Back at Greever’s Drug Store, Brent Foster is offering additional services.“We do the immunizations, flu shots, shingle shots,” he offered as an example.And with hope that innovation and legislation will improve the financial outlook, Foster says he has goals for the future of his 150-year-old business.“That it continues to grow and is here for years to come,” Foster said. “And that my granddaughter can be the next generation pharmacist.”</div></body>

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(WDBJ) - Greever’s Drug Store and the town of Chilhowie go way back. And owner Brent Foster has the receipts. “Hundredth anniversary of the town, we were the oldest active business,” Foster said during a tour of his shop. “How does that make you feel?” we asked. “Honored to be part of it,” he said.

Target 7: Fighting pharmacy deserts in Virginia

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(WDBJ) - Greever’s Drug Store and the town of Chilhowie go way back. And owner Brent Foster has the receipts. “Hundredth anniversary of the town, we were t

Target 7: Fighting pharmacy deserts in Virginia

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