Many people assume that local pharmacies are declining because they can’t compete. In fact, research by Consumer Reports and others has found that independent pharmacies are highly competitive: compared to chains, they offer better service and cheaper prescriptions, and surveys show many customers prefer them. Why then, are local pharmacies shuttering across the country? One major … Read More
At North Dakota polls on Tuesday, local ownership was the winner. The state voted overwhelmingly to keep its forward-thinking Pharmacy Ownership Law, defeating Measure 7, the Walmart-funded effort to overturn it. Final returns came in with 59 percent of the vote in favor of the law, the Fargo Forum reports.… Read More
This Tuesday, North Dakota voters will decide the fate of the state’s Pharmacy Ownership Law. Those working against the law—namely Walmart, which has sunk more than $3 million into a front group called North Dakotans for Lower Pharmacy Prices—contend that abandoning the long-standing policy would lead to an increase in the number of pharmacies serving North Dakota. Our research suggests just the opposite.… Read More
Thanks in large part to its Pharmacy Ownership Law, North Dakota outperforms neighboring states and the U.S. as whole on every key measure of pharmacy care. For more details on the law and its impact, see our 2014 report, North Dakota’s Pharmacy Ownership Law: Ensuring Access, Competitive Prices, and Quality Care.
What a difference local ownership makes. Under a forward-thinking 1963 law, North Dakota does not allow chains to operate pharmacies. Instead, virtually all of the state’s 171 pharmacies are locally owned and independent. In this data-driven study, ILSR finds that North Dakotans receive significantly better pharmacy care by every measure, from some of the lowest drug prices in the nation to unparalleled access, particularly in rural areas. … Read More
A recently opened Walgreens in Fargo, North Dakota, is not filling prescriptions. Corporate greed, not state law, is preventing the retailer from putting a pharmacy in the store.… Read More
A new report by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) concludes that repealing North Dakota’s Pharmacy Ownership Law would cost the state millions of dollars in annual economic activity and tax revenue, dramatically reduce the number of pharmacies serving rural areas, and degrade the overall quality of pharmacy services in the state.… Read More
For Immediate Release PRESS RELEASE CONTACT: Justin Dahlheimer Tel. 612-276-3456 Email: jdahlheimer@ilsr.org Minneapolis, Minn. – (January 26, 2009). A new report by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) concludes that repealing North Dakota’s Pharmacy Ownership Law would cost the state millions of dollars in annual economic activity and tax revenue, dramatically reduce the number of pharmacies … Read More
A unique law in North Dakota requires that pharmacies be owned by pharmacists, which means that almost all pharmacies in the state are independently owned. This report finds that, thanks to the law, North Dakota outperforms other states on key measures of pharmacy service, including the number of pharmacies serving rural areas and average prescription prices.… Read More
