Transforming Your Independent Pharmacy into a Profitable, Scalable Business

NCPA published a shocking study a few months ago. It showed that, in 2012, 23.6% of retail pharmacies were operating at a loss. In 2006 the statistic was just 12.4%. The study covers all retail settings – independent, chain, supermarket, etc.

In the past six years the number of pharmacies failing to maintain financial viability has increased from just over one tenth to almost one quarter of all pharmacies. Key factors leading to this downfall are decreasing margins and increasing labor costs.

And … script volumes continue to rise.

Every day for the next 19 years 10,000 people turn 65 years old. The average person over age 65 takes 7.5 meds per day. This means 170 million more scripts to be filled each year.

Also, with the Affordable Care Act, script volumes are expected to greatly increase as 30 million more Americans obtain healthcare coverage in the near future.

How is this volume going to be handled if 25% of pharmacies go out of business?

ScriptPro robots are filling 100 more vials per day now than they were a year ago. Imagine what that means to those pharmacies. First of all, they are using their automation to do a good job taking care of their customers and promoting their business. Second, they have the peace of mind of knowing that their robots are ensuring accuracy for each script they fill. And, without their robots, they would on average be paying for 5 labor hours each day just to cope with the increased volume that they have seen in the last 12 months.

We have correlated this data with what our customers are telling us about the gross profit effects from their volume increase. The answer is that their gross profits have been flat due to reimbursement pressures. But thanks to their robots, their net profit has not suffered. If they were paying for 5 extra labor hours each day, their net profit would have gone down and possibly into a loss position.

The reality is that you can’t make a profit paying people to count pills into a bottle. Your staff should be focused on additional services and patient care. There are real opportunities to make money this way. And we are seeing our customers lean on their automation and promote other methods of revenue generation.

ScriptPro has 6 different sizes of robots. We can help you select the best fit for your pharmacy and show you the time and dollar savings it will bring. Now, more than ever, your business depends on your alert, thoughtful, and strategic leadership.

In the past 15 years I’ve seen thousands of pharmacies throughout the world make the strategic decision to transform their operations with robotics. ScriptPro is ready to help you move quickly and effectively to transform your pharmacy business for more efficiency and profitability.

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