Trib Live: Pa. voters want answers about health care

By Jennifer Riley, Patients Come First Pennsylvania Executive Director

Pennsylvania voters hear plenty of promises about lowering drug costs. They also see pharmacies closing. What happens to affordable medicine when the pharmacy down the street is gone?

In Western Pennsylvania, that cost is landing on more families. Our communities have seen Rite Aid stores and independent pharmacies disappear. Since 2020, about 1,100 pharmacies have gone out of business across the state. Every closure shifts another burden onto patients.

In a recent Patients Come First survey, 88% of Pennsylvania registered voters said candidates’ healthcare positions are important to their vote. More than half said they are very important. On Election Day, candidates will need to explain why getting a prescription close to home is becoming harder.

Read the full op-ed in Trib Live here.