Independent Pharmacies Face Mounting Challenges in Modern Health Care Landscape | McKesson ideaShare

Independent pharmacies are navigating a complex and challenging health care environment, with economic pressures and evolving regulatory requirements threatening their sustainability. In an interview at McKesson ideaShare in Nashville, Tennessee, from July 10 to 13, 2025, Crystal Lennartz, president of Health Mart & Health Mart Atlas at McKesson, discusses the company's Health Mart franchise, which supports over 4400 independent pharmacies nationwide. She states that these pharmacies are struggling with reimbursement issues, operational complexities, and the need to expand clinical services. Their approach focuses on providing multifaceted solutions that help pharmacies not just survive but potentially thrive in a rapidly changing health care ecosystem.

The future of independent pharmacies appears to be increasingly centered on expanded clinical services. These emerging opportunities include immunizations, medication therapy management, and point-of-care testing. By diversifying their service offerings, pharmacies can become more integral to patient care and create additional revenue streams. McKesson's strategy aims to enable pharmacies to focus on patient care by handling backend support, including business operations, marketing assistance, and advocacy. Independent pharmacies are crucial health care access points, particularly in communities where traditional medical infrastructure might be limited.

"One of the major significant things that is impacting [independent pharmacies] is the ability to be reimbursed adequately for the clinical services that they provide, and also they're faced with a lot of regulatory changes that are impacting pharmacy and their scope of practice," Lennartz said. "That's why we're focused on strengthening the health of pharmacies and also providing them with the operational and clinical tools that they need to succeed."