Walgreens closing Chatham store on Thursday as officials warn of pharmacy deserts
Walgreens is set to close in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood on Thursday, and there's growing concern about where families will get their medications.
Elected officials and healthcare advocates gathered outside the store, near 86th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue to share next steps for residents.
In May, a Walgreens spokesperson told CBS News Chicago the store has experienced "significantly higher levels of theft and violent incidents than our other locations."
The spokesperson said they've made adjustments to their operations and taken other steps to mitigate the issue, but "ongoing safety challenges" made it hard to keep staff and customers safe, and so they have chosen to close the store.
Sixth Ward Alderman William Hall says closures like these are creating pharmacy deserts in Chicago. The nearest Walgreens to the one closing in Chatham is more than a mile away, at 87th and Stony Island Avenue.
He was among the elected officials gathering outside the store this morning. He's pushing for the city to take ownership of this issue through a new "office of pharmacy access."
Hall wants to create 77 access points for people to receive medications and supplements in the next seven years. He's starting a pilot program on 79th Street in July.
The alderman says he's meeting with Mayor Brandon Johnson to talk about funding this initiative on Thursday afternoon. One idea is to tax liquor sales between midnight and 6 a.m..
"We can become the landlord. We can give small pharmacists the opportunity to not deal with the overhead that sometimes costs them business," Hall said.
A resident visiting the store for the last time on Thursday said, "I understand about theft and all of that, but it's always something being taken away."
Last year, Walgreens announced it was closing five Chicago locations, including a significant store in the Bronzeville neighborhood at 35th Street and King Drive. Walgreens also abandoned stores at 71st and Jeffrey in South Shore and 79th and Jeffrey in South Chicago.
Neighbors express concern over medication access
In May, Darryl Smith told CBS News that his 76-year-old mother relies on medication from Walgreens after having a lung transplant. She takes 54 pills a day, and during his lunch break, he goes to the Walgreens in Chatham to pick up her medication.
"They don't care about the well-being. It's not their family that's on these meds," he said. "If they close this Walgreens, the next one is not within a distance for me to do on my lunch break. So it's a real inconvenience."
Other neighbors have called the store a "vital resource" to the community.
