Jacksonville leaders seek short- and long-term fixes after Walgreens closures create pharmacy gaps

Jacksonville council members, city health staff and residents met to discuss recent Walgreens store closures that council members said have worsened pharmacy access in parts of the city and could threaten medicine availability for seniors and people with chronic conditions.

Councilman Reginald Gaffney Jr., who convened the meeting, said he had received an “abundance of calls” after a Walgreens in his District 8 closed and that the company had announced plans for more nationwide closures. “My biggest fear is that if the city of Jacksonville don't get in front of this, we could kind of create a travesty,” Gaffney said.

The meeting focused on how closures affect neighborhoods already lacking health resources and on immediate steps the city can take while longer-term solutions are developed. Parvez Ahmed, chief of analytics in the mayor’s office, reviewed data showing life-expectancy and health-care access metrics by council district and said closures will have a greater adverse impact in districts with fewer resources. “If you look at that data, you will see that all of the indicators that determine our health and our well-being… District 8, District 10 have the fewest resources,” Ahmed said.

Speakers described…