(Baraboo, WI) Many Baraboo area residents were shocked to learn that their beloved pharmacy was closing after 171 years. During the Downtown Baraboo Famers market on Wednesday word began to spread that the pharmacy was suddenly closing. By Wednesday afternoon there were long lines of customers in the store and at the drive up window picking up prescriptions.
The closing caught many customers by surprise. One customer said he was filling a prescription and was told that he needed to pick it up by 6 p.m. on Wednesday or he would need to go to Walgreens to pick it up. He indicated this was the first he had heard about the closing.
On Thursday morning a sign on the door indicated that the Corner Drug Hometown Pharmacy has closed and prescriptions would be available at Walgreens.
According to a release from Hometown Pharmacy late Thursday afternoon, ,” First and foremost, we offer our sincerest apologies for the sudden notice. Due to strict contractual terms surrounding the transition to Walgreens, we were legally unable to share this news in advance. We know how abrupt this feels, and we truly regret not being able to say anything sooner.”
The release continues, “For years, PBMs (Pharmacy Benefit Managers) have continuously slashed reimbursement rates well below the actual cost to acquire and dispense medications, forcing pharmacies like ours to lose money simply filling everyday prescriptions. Time after time, Janet chose our patients over profit, absorbing those financial hits directly just to ensure our neighbors received the vital medicine they needed. But independent community pharmacies cannot indefinitely subsidize an abusive, broken PBM system designed to push local healthcare providers out of business. Despite exhausting every viable strategy to absorb and fight these losses, PBM-driven economics ultimately forced this outcome.”
On Thursday Baraboo residents continue to discuss the loss of this historic Baraboo Business. Many wonder what will happen with the building and what is next for this area.
