Drug Stores & Pharmacies NAICS 456110

May 4, 2026 - Tariffs Impact Entire Supply Chain

• Tariffs introduce a kind of disruption that can feel sudden and disorienting for pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers and buyers, according to Ryan Rotar, vice president of healthcare market strategy at Tecsys. Policy can shift with little notice, vary by country and product type, and arrive after production and distribution plans have already been set in motion. The core issue for pharmaceutical industry stakeholders is rarely the tariff line item itself. The bigger problems lie within the chain reaction that follows the tariff announcements: hurried decisions made on incomplete information that ripple through sourcing, pricing, inventory strategy, service levels and, ultimately, patient access. Buyers may place unusually large orders to hedge cost exposure. Distributors may adjust lanes, change purchasing behavior, or increase safety stock to protect continuity. Manufacturers may accelerate some steps, delay others, or re-route product to avoid fees. Then the pattern can reverse very quickly. Orders fall off because customers are now sitting on surplus, because policy shifts again, or because someone discovers product that had been effectively invisible inside the network. The early surge gets interpreted as real demand, only to become a steep correction weeks later. This whiplash strains forecasting and production planning, distorts allocation decisions, and increases the likelihood that the wrong product ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
• Walgreens is expanding its hybrid pharmacist role, a first-of-its-kind position that allows pharmacists to work both in-store and in centralized settings such as regional support sites, micro-fulfillment centers, or approved work‑at‑home environments. The role was developed in response to ongoing workforce challenges and evolving pharmacist expectations and is designed to improve schedule predictability, reduce burnout, and create more sustainable career paths while preserving continuity of care and patient relationships, according to Drugstore News. The hybrid pharmacist position has been rolled out in six states: Arkansas, Missouri, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Tennessee.

• Many drug store and pharmacy firms are under financial pressure as ongoing challenges persist into 2026, according to The Street. Walgreens plans to close roughly 1,200 stores through 2027, while CVS closed about 270 locations in 2025. Independent pharmacies are twice as likely to close and are often excluded from preferred pharmacy networks. Small, independent pharmacies say that reimbursement rates from pharmacy benefit managers are falling below their costs, according to First Alert 4. Pharmacist Jerry Callahan, owner of a The Medicine Shoppe in Pacific, Missouri, said that he has to buy name-brand medications directly from drug manufacturers, often paying thousands of dollars up front, but when a pharmacy benefit manager reimburses him for filling the prescription, it’s often less than what he paid to get it. A common asthma medication, for example, costs more than $600 but reimbursement is $30 under cost, according to Callahan. About a third of America’s pharmacies have closed since 2010, amounting to an unprecedented decrease in neighborhood drug stores, according to Powers Health. Store closures accelerated in 2018, primarily driven by closures among chain pharmacies during a period of consolidation in the industry, Powers Health reported.
• The prices that drug stores and pharmacies charge for their products increased slightly during the first three months of 2026, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Drug store and pharmacy employment decreased slightly and wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first two months of 2026, according to the BLS.