A new survey reveals many pharmacists say the Medicare prescription drug benefit has been bad for business. The survey of more than 800 pharmacists comes from the Kaiser Family Foundation. KPBS Reporter Kenny Goldberg has the story.
The survey shows a majority of pharmacists say the Medicare prescription drug program has created a lot of administrative hassles.
More than one in four independent pharmacists say the new program has forced them to take out a loan or a line of credit.
Fadi Attiya runs San Diego's Galloway Pharmacy, one of the region's largest independent drug stores.
Attiya: "Since January, the pharmacy has just gone upside down, it's just unbelievable. We cannot continue to make point five percent profit. It's just not a reasonable business model."
Attiya says he's never had cash flow problems before. But he says with the new Medicare program, insurance companies are taking too long to pay.
Kenny Goldberg, KPBS News.
