Pharmacists have long been trusted health professionals in communities across North Carolina. They are often recognizable faces in the communities they serve, and local pharmacies provide access points for more than just medication. Today, local, community-based pharmacies face significant competitive and financial pressures, and many are exploring innovative ways to expand their work and partner with other medical disciplines to create tomorrow’s sustainable practice models.
The July 2025 issue of the North Carolina Medical Journal is out now, and it’s all about the role of pharmacies and pharmacists in North Carolina. In the issue you will find real-world policy insights, examples of successful community-level models, and unique solutions to some of the pressing problems pharmacy faces.
Plus, the issue includes original research about caregiver mental health, Medicaid-covered telehealth delivery to children with diabetes, challenges that cut across different policy authorities seeking to address health-related social needs, and how drive time is associated with receipt of single-visit, long-acting, reversible contraception.
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Issue brief: Essential, Local, and Ready to Serve: Pharmacists as Gateways to Health Access in North Carolina
By Dr. Jeff Mercer and Dr. Angela Kashuba
Pharmacists are more than medication experts. They provide vital, community-based access points for health care in North Carolina. This issue brief frames pharmacists as essential partners in expanding access to care and outlines North Carolina’s health care landscape.
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Financial Challenges for Independent Pharmacies and the Cost to Patient Care
By Mike Bollinger
Independent pharmacies face critical challenges from declining reimbursements, increased operational costs, and competition in a consolidating market. This commentary outlines how financial pressure threatens patient access and quality care and offers possible solutions for independent pharmacy sustainability.
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Pharmacy’s Impact on Hospitals and Health -Systems By Dr. Stephen Eckel
As hospitals and health systems evolve, the roles of pharmacists within them continue to change. In this commentary, Dr. Stephen Eckel outlines the different roles pharmacists fill and explores future opportunity for pharmacy teams to play strategic and decision-making roles in hospital and health system settings.
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Community-Based Health Care Systems: Who are the Actors and What is the Play?
By Dr. Trista Pfeiffenberger, Dr. Troy Trygstad, and Dr. L. Allen Dobson
This commentary explores the different actors who drive health at the community level. The authors describe the different medical professionals who typically provide community-based care and outline an opportunity for pharmacists to provide patient-centered health care.
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Utilizing Pharmacy as a Bridge to Connect Health Care and Public Health
By Dr. Patrick Brown
Pharmacies can serve as a critical connector between the clinical and public health sectors. This article presents ways the two disciplines can leverage shared priorities to strengthen each other and improve health.
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From Access to Outcomes: Community Pharmacies Transforming to Improve North Carolina Senior Care
By Dr. Gregory Vassie
North Carolina is aging fast. As the state’s demographics change, health care needs to be prepared to meet new and growing demands. This commentary describes how community pharmacies are evolving to meet the needs of older adults, offering more services in easy-to-navigate, local formats.
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Integrating Medication Management and Access, Medicare Counseling, and Tailored Referrals: Planning to Scale a Community-Based Model By Dr. Vanna Labi, Dr. Rachael Clemens, Dr. Eleanor McConnell, Dr. Janet Prvu Bettger, and Dr. Gina Upchurch
Senior PharmAssist is a Durham-based nonprofit that offers medication management, financial medication assistance, tailored referrals, and Medicare coverage counseling. In this commentary, the authors discuss the nonprofit as a scalable, community-based model for older adults in North Carolina.
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Medication Access Models for Older Adults and Underserved Populations: Replication and Delivery of Innovative Services Across the State By Dr. Megan Carr, Dr. Julie Cooper, Dr. Doyle Cummings, Dr. Marilyn Disco, Dr. Vanna Labi, Dr. Ann Marie Nye, Dr. Sheri Omozokpea, Dr. Lani True, Dr. Jessica Visco, Dr. Tasha Woodall, and Dr. Gina Upchurch
In a second article on Senior PharmAssist, these authors discuss ongoing work to expand the model of pharmacy care for older adults in Buncombe, Guilford, and Pitt Counties. They explore Senior PharmAssist as a scalable model with serious potential across the state.
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Bolstering Primary Care and Pharmacy Collaboration as a Solution to Health Care Workforce, Access and Affordability Issues By Jon Easter and Dr. Adam Zolotor
When health professionals work together, patients benefit from more comprehensive primary care. In this commentary, Jon Easter and Dr. Adam Zolotor discuss interprofessional practice and outline four policy recommendations to increase collaboration:
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Health Care Services Provided by North Carolina Pharmacists
By Dr. Mollie Ashe Scott, Dr. Macary Weck Marciniak, Dr. Caroline Eason, and Dr. Amanda Savage
Pharmacists do much more than dispense medications. This commentary spotlights the many services pharmacists provide, from initiating certain medications to providing health care services in collaboration with physicians.
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Pharmacy Services as a Model of Access to Medication and Health Care in Community Health Centers
By Dr. Matthew Ransom and Dr. William Hathaway
The federal 340B program allows certain safety net providers to purchase drugs at discounted prices, allowing them to improve care for patients who would otherwise be priced out of treatment. In this commentary, Dr. Matthew Ransom and Dr. William Hathaway discuss the 340B program, the tools it offers to safety net providers, and how the Mountain Area Health Education Center uses it to improve local health outcomes.
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A Silent Health Care Emergency: The Disappearance of North Carolina Community Pharmacies
By Dr. Richard Drew
Pharmacy closures are accelerating across North Carolina, increasing risk of access deserts in rural and urban areas. This commentary outlines what’s at stake, especially in rural and underserved areas, and offers ideas for coordinated intervention to keep local pharmacy doors open.
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Mentally Unhealthy Days and Frequent Mental Distress Among Caregivers in North Carolina
By Emmaline Keesee and Dr. Erin Kent
Caregivers are vital, and they often carry significant burdens in their personal and professional lives. This original research explores mental distress among North Carolina caregivers and how it compares to non-caregivers.
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Cost Analysis of Telehealth Delivery to Children with Diabetes Mellitus Receiving Medicaid Benefits in North Carolina
By Dr. Kathryn Kreider, Dr. Brigit Carter, Dr. Lisa Rasbach, and Dr. Trisha Vanderploeg
This original research evaluates the economic impact of telehealth care for pediatric diabetes patients with Medicaid insurance.
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How Providers, Health System Leaders, and States Can Work Together to Align Disparate Policy Efforts to Address Health-Related Social Needs: Learning from North Carolina
By Brianna Van Stekelenburg, Katie Huber, Yolande Pokam Tchuisseu, Dr. Rebecca Whitaker, Dr. Raman Nohria, Andrea Thoumi, Michelle Lyn, Dr. Robert Saunders, and Dr. Will Bleser
In this original research, the authors explore North Carolina’s health-related social needs landscape and evaluate how a variety of major policy authorities can benefit from better coordination and alignment of efforts.
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Driving Time and Single-Visit Long-Acting Reversible Contraception Provision in North Carolina
By Salma Ali, Dr. Linsey Yates, Dr. Gretchen Sauer, and Dr. Kavita Shah Arora
This research letter explores how distance impacts same-day access to long-acting contraception, with findings suggesting that longer drive time is associated with the likelihood of receiving contraception.
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In Times of Anticipatory Grief, Hold On to Your Relationships
By Dr. Anthony Nicolas Galanos
In this poignant letter to the NCMJ editor, Dr. Anthony Nicolas Galanos discusses the grief that occurs when medical professionals learn about serious health diagnoses and share that information with patients and their families. He writes about the doctor-patient relationship and the importance of prioritizing connection and trust as doctors work with their patients.
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