Much of the policy discussion about prescription drugs has centered on the high cost of pharmaceuticals. Now, however, the financial struggles of several large pharmacy chains is raising concerns about so-called "pharmacy deserts" in which increasing numbers of consumers lack convenient access to needed medications.

The recent Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by Rite Aid only exacerbates the problem. The nation's third-largest pharmacy chain faces $3.3 billion in debt, declining revenues and potentially massive opioid legal liabilities. As a result, it plans to close 150 of its 2,100 U.S. locations. Rite Aid is following in the steps of its largest competitors:

• CVS is set to close the doors on 900 of its stores by the end of next year as part of its online strategy. It announced in 2021 that it would close 300 stores each year through 2024. The closings also are in part to a response to rampant shoplifting. Last month, a customer accused of shoplifting shot and killed an Arizona manager.
• Walgreens plans to shutter 150 stores by next summer, citing reduced earnings because of plummeting demand for COVID vaccines and tests. Shares in the pharmaceutical chain reached their lowest level in more than 11 years in June, prompting drastic cost-cutting measures. Moreover, employees at more than 500 of Walgreens' 9,000 stores across the country went on strike for several days in mid-September.

Over the past two years, these three chain drugstores have announced plans to shutter a total of more than 1,500 stores. Currently, 90% of U.S. residents live within five miles of a community pharmacy, and 85% of patients receive medications from a local brick-and-mortar pharmacy. These closings will compound the number of pharmacy deserts, which a recent study reported in JAMA Network defined as "any geographic area located at least 10 miles from the nearest pharmacy."