Senior Health Tips to Help You Manage Your Pharmacy Issues 2/25/2025 | By Howard LeWine, M.D. Question: I have been using the same pharmacy for many years. Recently, it has been more of a struggle to get my prescriptions. The lines can be very long, and I feel rushed when the staff finally gets to me. Are pharmacy issues like this common? Answer: The types of changes you describe are happening across the country. Like many other businesses, pharmacies are struggling with budget cuts and staffing shortages. That’s leading to challenging working conditions for pharmacists and the technicians who support them. They’re doing more with less, and yet they’re expected to fill hundreds of prescriptions per day, administer vaccines, consult with customers, and call insurance companies to resolve billing issues. As a result, many pharmacy workers are experiencing burnout. They say they don’t have the time to do their jobs properly, and they worry about patient safety. Meanwhile, customers are sometimes scrambling to get their prescriptions filled or wondering if they should be concerned about the safety of their medications. Sometimes there’s a problem because the drug is out of stock. Your pharmacy may be unable to fill a prescription in a timely manner because they don’t have the medication on hand. It could just be that the drug is temporarily out of stock. Or it could be due to a drug manufacturing issue causing a drug shortage. If it’s a manufacturer issue, call your doctor’s office. Your doctor may need to change to a different medication that can work just as well. If the prescription is temporarily out of stock, ask your pharmacist to see if another store in the chain has it, make the call yourself, or ask your doctor to call in a prescription to a different pharmacy — one where it’s already confirmed that your medication is in stock and available. If you use maintenance drugs — those taken daily for chronic conditions such as high cholesterol, high or low blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, thyroid disease, depression, or anxiety — don’t wait until the last minute to refill your prescription. Consider putting the prescription on auto-refill, which should allow the pharmacy to refill the prescription within a week of when it is due. Pharmacists work hard to fill prescriptions accurately, making sure you receive the right drug at the right dose. Yet mistakes sometimes occur. It’s unclear if that’s happening more frequently now. Always double-check medications before leaving a pharmacy. Look at your pills to become familiar with their appearance. If you get a batch that looks different, ask your pharmacist about it or search online to find an image of the pill you have and what it’s used for. Generic medications can come in a variety of shapes and colors, which can vary by manufacturer. Howard LeWine, M.D., is an internist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. For additional consumer health information, please visit www.health.harvard.edu. ©2025 Harvard University. For terms of use, please see https://www.health.harvard.edu/terms-of-use. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Read similar health articles on Seniors Guide: How to Manage Medications for Loved Ones How to Save on Prescription Medications Read More Howard LeWine, M.D. Howard LeWine, M.D., is an internist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. For additional consumer health information, please visit www.health.harvard.edu.