'Pharmageddon' could close hundreds of pharmacies as protest spreads

return2ozma@lemmy.world to News@lemmy.world – 267 points –
'Pharmageddon' could close pharmacies as protest spreads
nbcnews.com
26

The protests are that much more notable because the pharmacists don't have a union and aren't asking for better pay. They primarily want their employers to hire more staff to alleviate the workload and to eliminate policies that push them to work faster. They say those conditions are making it more likely they will make a mistake that could harm a patient.

Highlighting because people don't read articles - they are protesting to ensure patients are safe from the speed of greed. I for one would like my medication properly compounded and dosed. Good for these workers, get them more hands.

They also deserve a living wage, PTO and eight hour shifts.

They do but they aren't even asking for that. They're asking for more workers to be hired.

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I even felt this in my hometown. Just about every pharmacy in town has lost 60-90% of its staff. Lines out the door for some of these places. And of course the one poor worker who stays gets to be berated by the imbecile senior population that thinks the world revolves around them.

...and even if you want to vote with your dollar and support a local independent pharmacy instead -- nope, you can't because they've been driven out of business!

This is planned for 3 days. They really need to unionize with this or it’s doomed.

I wish people would stop planning for an end date for these things, that's what people from the other site did and look where that got us lmfao

I imagine it’s out of necessity. They aren’t unionized, so they don’t have a strike fund.

Yes they do... Sort of. This was organized with the hashtag PizzaIsNotWorking on Facebook, and theres a gofundme page that reached about a million. Many unions are offering help, hopefully resources will reach them. But they aren't asking for much, either.

Yeah it’s getting on my nerves. Fucking unionize. Or wild cat. But wild cats come with the threat of “we’ll do it again”

My local CVS started closing for lunch in the past year. I've never seen a pharmacy do that (I'm sure some did).

The amount of coverage in scheduling is now such that one might take a lunch break to go pick up a script and walk away without it. Capitalism is being squeezed to the absolute limit. We're not getting more. We're getting less. It's time for this to become a primary talking point, but stupid mother fuckers are pulled toward fascism because they fail to blame the right people for their shortcomings.

I think they deserve a lunch break just like everyone else. And not all of locations are big enough to be able to staff through lunch breaks. My local place does it from 1 to 1:30. They have the right amount of staff the rest of the time as the line is never very long.

Of course they deserve a lunch break. It just used to be that there were enough people to keep the pharmacy open while people took lunch.

As another example, there are twelve or thirteen teller stations at a local bank. They haven't had more than two tellers any time I've been there in five years. Do I think they need to fill all stations? No. But two is clearly the minimum they can have without falling apart, and that's all they provide.

We're getting less customer service than we did in the past. Because corporations have realized that they can get away with it. We're basically captives who can't leave / shop around to find anything better. This is what capitalism creates and we're at the worst (so far) point of it.

And in the case of CVS they are making deals with insurance companies making them THE ONLY pharmacy where people can get their prescriptions (Aetna and Cigna) to name two.

My pharmacy has had the same number of people pretty for years now. But it can totally be the exception. I just don't mind that they all get lunch at the same time. Though I do kind of mindvthey only get 30 minutes.

And the bank, yeah, only 2 at mine, but also never a line.

So those aren't great examples.

An easy one is doctor's offices. Corporations have started buying up clinics all over. And suddenly doctor's have no say in how the business is run. The business managers don't care about the patients because there is no shortage. So like this mental health place I take my kids... they just flat out refuse to service any child whose parents are in the process of separating, or even soon to be. And a list of other exclusions that seem like when a kid needs help the most.
And a lot of doctor's offices won't let you pay your bill at the office. They tell you to go home and go online and do it. And don't get me started on all the forms that someone from the office would enter while asking you questions, but now you have to do it all yourself. The time suck from all the accounts I have to make and manage for my kids is insane. But also my mother in her 80's is expected to navigate all these terrible portals and websites full of forms. Everyone is pushing the work down to the customer in order to maximize profits.

And the bank, yeah, only 2 at mine, but also never a line.

So those aren’t great examples.

At mine, the line can be (and often is) 13 people deep. That's a great example.

Another reason all healthcare and pharmaceuticals in the US should be nationalized, and regulated.

Also, #fuckyourdividends

Pharmaceutical industry still takes in the HUGE profits.

Pharmacists used to make nearly 6 figures out of college in the mid 2000s. They do not good money these days.

It's beyond frustrating to jump through all the process hoops to get a shot or pick up a prescription (use our online scheduler, bla bla) and after going to the place they had the right vaccine, sure enough the appointments are running 40+ minutes behind and meanwhile it's march of the Karens trying to assert themselves while the skeleton crew on staff try to answer multiple phone calls at once

I mean yay, someone's getting extra in their dividends or something but seriously when I showed up 10 minutes early in order to not hold up the works, a 45 minute wait costs me a whole hour of watching staff radiate the same energy as beaten dogs while shitty people demand to see a manager and slow everything down

TBH I hope they all strike, hard.