Raleys to close pharmacies

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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by lake »

I also have to wonder how much the growth of Kaiser has impacted Raley's (as well as other pharmacy operators in Kaiser's regions.)
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by storewanderer »

lake wrote: November 26th, 2019, 6:50 pm I also have to wonder how much the growth of Kaiser has impacted Raley's (as well as other pharmacy operators in Kaiser's regions.)
Well, Kaiser has nothing up here in the areas Raleys operates in Nevada and they still closed 4 pharmacies here. It just seems like an across the board thing they did.

I am wondering what is going on with Raleys. Their Scolaris purchase continues to really flounder. Store cleanliness has been declining in some of the not so recently remodeled stores (specifically the one on Keystone in Reno, filthy floors and filthy deli prep areas and walls) (also the former Scolaris on McCarran which Raleys should be embarrassed to even have its name on). They have also made some very significant price increased in some (not all) locations recently.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by lake »

storewanderer wrote: November 26th, 2019, 9:03 pm
lake wrote: November 26th, 2019, 6:50 pm I also have to wonder how much the growth of Kaiser has impacted Raley's (as well as other pharmacy operators in Kaiser's regions.)
Well, Kaiser has nothing up here in the areas Raleys operates in Nevada and they still closed 4 pharmacies here. It just seems like an across the board thing they did.

I am wondering what is going on with Raleys. Their Scolaris purchase continues to really flounder. Store cleanliness has been declining in some of the not so recently remodeled stores (specifically the one on Keystone in Reno, filthy floors and filthy deli prep areas and walls) (also the former Scolaris on McCarran which Raleys should be embarrassed to even have its name on). They have also made some very significant price increased in some (not all) locations recently.
Whoops, for some reason I assumed Kaiser operated in Reno.

However, I did do some research and although I couldn't find any data that non-retail pharmacies were growing, I did find numerous articles stating that non-retail pharmacies were far outpacing hiring growth than more traditional retail settings (https://www.drugchannels.net/2018/01/20 ... -good.html). As health care providers (Kaiser is the best example but many are heading this way) consolidate services and many bring pharmacies in-house, I would bet that this would heavily impact the margins for traditional pharmacies.

From someone that has Kaiser, when you go to a Kaiser office, the pharmacy is packed with a consistent 30+ people in line and 12+ pharmacists working. I can't say I've seen the same at any retail chain. Although I can't find details on exact market share, it appears that Kaiser holds somewhere between 30-50% of the market in Northern California based on region. When 30-50% of the population can't go to a conventional pharmacy, that can't be good.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by klkla »

lake wrote: November 26th, 2019, 6:50 pm I also have to wonder how much the growth of Kaiser has impacted Raley's (as well as other pharmacy operators in Kaiser's regions.)
You’re on the right track, though. Even in regions where Kaiser doesn’t operate you have a lot of healthcare providers require that medicines prescribed on a a regular basis be filled at centralized pharmacies and delivered by mail.

I think this is probably having a big effect on retail pharmacies.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by storewanderer »

klkla wrote: November 27th, 2019, 8:27 am
lake wrote: November 26th, 2019, 6:50 pm I also have to wonder how much the growth of Kaiser has impacted Raley's (as well as other pharmacy operators in Kaiser's regions.)
You’re on the right track, though. Even in regions where Kaiser doesn’t operate you have a lot of healthcare providers require that medicines prescribed on a a regular basis be filled at centralized pharmacies and delivered by mail.

I think this is probably having a big effect on retail pharmacies.
Centralized filling has been going on for decades though with some plans... I dealt with that as a teenager a long time ago on some ongoing acne medication. Have the insurance gotten even more strong armed about having people use centralized fill for ongoing medications?

A lot of people I know still go to a pharmacy to get their ongoing medications... guess it depends on the insurance plan.

I wonder if this Kaiser's model could potentially allow them to lease pharmacies within some retail stores. But they seem to be pushing integrated and that means having the doctor and pharmacy all together in the same place.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by Alpha8472 »

Most insurances still allow people to use retail pharmacies. Very few insurances demand mail order only. For example, if you get a prescription for an urgent antibiotic or nitroglycerin for a heart attack you do not want to have to wait for mail order.

Some insurances allow only a 30 days supply of medication at retail pharmacies, but allow 90 days via mail order. This is an incentive to use mail order. However, mail order is difficult. Those mail order pharmacies have long wait times on the phone. What if you suddenly lose your blood pressure medicine or run out? You cannot walk into a retail pharmacy and get more. Your prescription is stuck at the mail order pharmacy. Transferring is a difficult process, especially if the mail order pharmacy is only open weekdays and for limited hours. They are not open at night.

Kaiser believes in one stop shopping. They don't want to put their pharmacies in retail stores. They want pharmacies right next to the doctors' offices.

Kaiser purposely makes their in person pharmacies understaffed. They want to push you to do mail order. The lines can be long at Kaiser pharmacies. When a doctor sends a prescription to a Kaiser pharmacy, it is not automatically filled. They only fill it if you come in and ask for it. You wait in line and it is never ready. Then you wait again, and you have to wait in line a second time.

Copays are lower if you use mail order for some Kaiser plans. Raley's, Safeway, and other supermarket chains do not push mail order, because they want customers to come into the stores and make purchases. Kaiser does not sell much in their pharmacies with regard to retail items. They don't care if people buy anything in their pharmacies. In fact, many retail items at Kaiser pharmacies are sold at a lower price than at CVS or Walgreens. Sometimes it is even cheaper than Walmart. Kaiser even sold the morning after pill for $10 because the cost of a pregnancy is a drain on Kaiser's resources.

I have friends who worked for Kaiser's central fill pharmacy in Livermore, California. It was like a sweatshop. With supervisors barking out orders on the overhead speakers. They tell you when to work and when to take breaks. Employees are treated like factory workers to be worked to the bone.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by klkla »

I am aware that some people still go to the pharmacy in person and that mail order has been going on for a while, but it has been increasing dramatically in the last couple years in a drive to cut costs.

My mom was with an insurance company in Las Vegas that required regular medicine to be delivered, so that is happening with some companies and that was a fairly recent change in policy. And, of course people will still need to go to the pharmacy for emergency or urgent prescriptions.

My point was that prescriptions delivered by mail are increasing and as a result those prescriptions are not being filled at retail pharmacies which is contributing to the problem of them not being economically viable for some retailers in some or all of their stores.
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Re: Raleys to close pharmacies

Post by submariner »

All,

This topic is about the Raley's chain closing their pharmacies. I've had to remove a few posts not relevant to the topic, and many more are borderline. Feel free to start a new topic about the impact of healthcare organizations and their impact on retail pharmacies; but discussion on helathcare provider pharmacies on their own isn't in scope for this site.
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