Poll results: Reimbursement top of mind

Drug Store News’ latest weekly poll was focused on finding out what our readers found to be the most pressing issue facing the industry. Throughout the week, 348 readers weighed in and, perhaps unsurprisingly, two items related to pharmacy payment made up nearly a quarter of responses.  

Thirty-five percent of respondents cited reimbursement pressure as the biggest challenge fac-ing retail pharmacy, with a further 27% citing DIR fees as the biggest challenge. Roughly 17% of the readers who took the poll said that the growth of online and mail-order pharmacies — driven by payers incentivizing their use — is the top challenge facing the industry. And though much has been made of Amazon’s foray into pharmacy, only 9% of our readers who responded think it is the top issue that the industry should be focused on. 

Among the 12% who didn’t think any of the answers supplied by DSN constituted the biggest challenge in the industry, staffing concerns emerged as a leading area of concern — with many noting that fewer people staffing the pharmacy counter means pharmacists are spread too thin. 

If you missed last week’s poll, consider participating this week as DSN tries to identify the bold ideas that will shape the future of the industry.