Walgreens refuses Del. Medicaid

Happy Harry pharmacies in Delaware say they will stop filling drug prescriptions for the state’s health insurance program for poor residents.

Delaware residents who have Medicaid health insurance will soon be turned away from Happy Harry pharmacies. (Photo Flickr/Elite PhotoArt)

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Walgreens owns 66 Happy Harry stores in Delaware. The company has announced that it will no longer accept Medicaid insurance plans, because the state is cutting its reimbursement rates to pharmacies.

Mike Kersteter is the executive director of People’s Place, a community assistance group that serves people with Medicaid. He says the decision will cause inconvenience, but nothing more serious.

Kersteter: There are Happy Harry’s and Walgreens everywhere these days. They’re one of the more accessible of the drug stores, but there’s so many pharmacies around, at least in our area…especially with Walmart being big in the pharmacy business I just don’t see a huge impact. I think it will be an inconvenience for some of our patients to switch pharmacies but I think they’ll be able to get their meds.

Delaware’s Department of Health and Social Services expects to save one million dollars by cutting the reimbursement rate by two percent. In a statement, the department says Walgreens is refusing to share in the sacrifice necessary to deal with the state’s budget challenges.