Rural Pharmacy and Prescription Drugs – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Pharmacy and Prescription Drugs.
Pharmacists Fill Needed Health Care Gap For Rural Americans
Profiles rural pharmacists and their experiences working in areas that have an increased burden of chronic disease and reduced healthcare access.
Author(s): Loren Bonner
Citation: Pharmacy Today
Date: 10/2023
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Profiles rural pharmacists and their experiences working in areas that have an increased burden of chronic disease and reduced healthcare access.
Author(s): Loren Bonner
Citation: Pharmacy Today
Date: 10/2023
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Rural Pharmacies Provide Multi-Faceted Value to Rural Communities
Describes the role rural pharmacies can play in the provision of healthcare in rural communities. Describes the challenges faced by rural pharmacies and efforts to address those challenges through partnerships and pharmacist training.
Author(s): Whitney Zahnd
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 07/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Describes the role rural pharmacies can play in the provision of healthcare in rural communities. Describes the challenges faced by rural pharmacies and efforts to address those challenges through partnerships and pharmacist training.
Author(s): Whitney Zahnd
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 07/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Oral Health Disparities Through the Lifespan: Challenges and Opportunities
Recording of a June 7, 2023, conference session on oral health disparities as part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Health Equity Conference. Features a presentation from the CMS Office of the Administrator comparing differences in rural and urban dental opioid prescribing to adolescent/young adult and adult Medicaid/CHIP enrollees by patient and county characteristics. Transcript available in the video description.
Additional links: Carla Shoff, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of the Administrator - Presentation Slides
Date: 06/2023
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Recording of a June 7, 2023, conference session on oral health disparities as part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Health Equity Conference. Features a presentation from the CMS Office of the Administrator comparing differences in rural and urban dental opioid prescribing to adolescent/young adult and adult Medicaid/CHIP enrollees by patient and county characteristics. Transcript available in the video description.
Additional links: Carla Shoff, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of the Administrator - Presentation Slides
Date: 06/2023
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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340B Drug Discount Program: Information about Hospitals That Received an Eligibility Exception as a Result of COVID-19
Provides an overview of a provision of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, that allowed hospitals to request an exception to the disproportionate share hospital (DSH) percentage eligibility requirement if they were unable to meet it due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Explores the exception process and provides information on hospitals that received the exception. Discusses the amount of 340B drug purchases and discounts that excepted hospitals indicated they had in 2020 and 2021; the extent to which excepted hospitals indicated providing discounts on 340B drugs to low-income, uninsured patients; and results of the Health Resources and Services Administration's audits and oversight activities to assess program compliance.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2023
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Provides an overview of a provision of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, that allowed hospitals to request an exception to the disproportionate share hospital (DSH) percentage eligibility requirement if they were unable to meet it due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Explores the exception process and provides information on hospitals that received the exception. Discusses the amount of 340B drug purchases and discounts that excepted hospitals indicated they had in 2020 and 2021; the extent to which excepted hospitals indicated providing discounts on 340B drugs to low-income, uninsured patients; and results of the Health Resources and Services Administration's audits and oversight activities to assess program compliance.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2023
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Travel Times to Facilities Offering Oral Medication Therapy for COVID-19
Results of a study exploring accessibility of oral COVID-19 therapeutics across the United States, by examining travel times to places where these medications are available. Features a county-level map with shadings showing ranges of travel time by census tract.
Author(s): Peter A. Kahn, Xiaohan Ying, Walter S. Mathis
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 6(1)
Date: 01/2023
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Results of a study exploring accessibility of oral COVID-19 therapeutics across the United States, by examining travel times to places where these medications are available. Features a county-level map with shadings showing ranges of travel time by census tract.
Author(s): Peter A. Kahn, Xiaohan Ying, Walter S. Mathis
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 6(1)
Date: 01/2023
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30 Years Of 340B: Preserving The Health Care Safety Net
Discusses the development and purpose of the 340B Drug Pricing Program, and provides an overview of the program. Summarizes research on the impact of the 340B program on hospitals and lessons learned.
Author(s): Henry A. Waxman
Citation: Health Affairs Forefront
Date: 12/2022
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Discusses the development and purpose of the 340B Drug Pricing Program, and provides an overview of the program. Summarizes research on the impact of the 340B program on hospitals and lessons learned.
Author(s): Henry A. Waxman
Citation: Health Affairs Forefront
Date: 12/2022
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Audiology, Medicine, and Pharmacy Interprofessional Preliminary Interviews and Discussions: Improving Hearing Health Care in Rural Alabama
Results of a study to determine the feasibility of interprofessional collaboration among physicians and audiologists and pharmacists and audiologists, to improve access and affordability of hearing health care in rural communities. Based on information from online surveys and virtual discussion groups with 16 family physicians and medicine residents at the University of Alabama and 15 pharmacists who worked in independently owned community pharmacies in Alabama.
Author(s): Emma B. Brothers, Marcia J. Hay-McCutcheon, Peter J. Hughes, M. Louanne Friend
Citation: American Journal of Audiology, 31(3), 656-668
Date: 09/2022
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Results of a study to determine the feasibility of interprofessional collaboration among physicians and audiologists and pharmacists and audiologists, to improve access and affordability of hearing health care in rural communities. Based on information from online surveys and virtual discussion groups with 16 family physicians and medicine residents at the University of Alabama and 15 pharmacists who worked in independently owned community pharmacies in Alabama.
Author(s): Emma B. Brothers, Marcia J. Hay-McCutcheon, Peter J. Hughes, M. Louanne Friend
Citation: American Journal of Audiology, 31(3), 656-668
Date: 09/2022
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Update on Rural Independently Owned Pharmacy Closures in the United States, 2003-2021
Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2021. Compares the annual retail pharmacy counts and percent change in the number of pharmacies by pharmacy type and metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore county status. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2021. Compares the annual retail pharmacy counts and percent change in the number of pharmacies by pharmacy type and metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore county status. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Medicare Beneficiary Access to Prescription Drugs in Rural Areas
Policy brief identifying the types of pharmacies used by Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas with limited or no access to pharmacies, using data from July 2016 to December 2017. Features statistics on county and beneficiary characteristics and claim event counts, with breakdowns by county pharmacy cohort.
Author(s): Onyinye Oyeka, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Policy brief identifying the types of pharmacies used by Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas with limited or no access to pharmacies, using data from July 2016 to December 2017. Features statistics on county and beneficiary characteristics and claim event counts, with breakdowns by county pharmacy cohort.
Author(s): Onyinye Oyeka, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Rural and Urban Pharmacy Presence – Pharmacy Deserts
Uses data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs to explore the number of counties with no pharmacy presence between January - June 2022. Compares pharmacy absence and the characteristics of counties with no retail pharmacy across noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Joanne Constantin, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Uses data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs to explore the number of counties with no pharmacy presence between January - June 2022. Compares pharmacy absence and the characteristics of counties with no retail pharmacy across noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties.
Author(s): Joanne Constantin, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Last Updated: 9/4/2025