Kansas City, MO - The pandemic has caused a nationwide staffing shortage for many businesses, and pharmacies are no exception. Pharmacies around the KC Metro are having to close early or even close for days at a time.
The problem lies between the increased workload and reimbursement issues, says Aaron Dunkel, Executive Director of the Kansas Pharmacists Association.
“What you’re seeing now is the fallout from, really, a series of years of under-reimbursement,” said Dunkel.
Dunkel said the Pharmacy Benefit Administration drastically reduced the reimbursement to pharmacies that has caused them to work with the minimum amount of staff possible in order to do the business they have to do.
“Things that have made it really hard for them to plan for either staff expansions or even for staff maintenance in a lot of cases,” said Dunkel.
Dunkel feels independently owned pharmacies have done a better job than chain pharmacies responding to the demand.