A crowd of about 25 people were at Sumpter Pharmacy in Adel to talk with US Senator Chuck Grassley about the importance of local pharmacies.

The event started with Sumpter Owner Leslie Herron who talked about the advantages of local pharmacies and the roles they play in rural communities and providing enhanced services to people that not only need medications but also treatments. She said Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) have a stronghold on drug prices in the medication process and expressed concern over losing patients who are on Medicare Part D at the beginning of next year because she can’t afford to handle their prescriptions.

Grassley said local pharmacies are needed now more than ever as more doctors and other physicians leave the profession or are located further away from people. He added that pharmacists need to be listed as a provider with Medicare. 

“So that they can be reimbursed for what they’re filling the void when you don’t have enough doctors and nurses in a community. And it’s even worse in rural America. And if there’s anything that I hear at my 99-county town meetings it’s the cost of prescription drugs, and it’s the problems of pharmacy and not having the services enough.”    

Grassley said he is working on a bipartisan bill in the Senate to provide for transparency for direct and indirect reimbursements to pharmacies from the PBMs.