Essential, Local, and Ready to Serve: Pharmacists as Gateways to Health Access in North Carolina

In the heart of rural North Carolina, the Weston family has long depended on their local pharmacy, not just for prescriptions, but for care, guidance, and trust built in their community over generations. When nine-year-old Cassie Weston’s asthma flares up, her mother remembers how easy it once was to stop by the local pharmacy, where the pharmacist knew Cassie’s history and could offer immediate help. That pharmacy, in their longstanding service to the community, often acted as the only accessible health care provider in a county with no urgent care and limited access to doctors. But it closed last year, one of hundreds to shutter across North Carolina in the last several years, most in medically underserved areas.