A2 BAKER CITY HERALD • SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2022
Local
TURNING BACK THE PAGES
50 YEARS AGO
from the Democrat-Herald
February 19, 1972
Gary Dielman, 32, left his law studies to accept an
appointment Friday as juvenile court director to replace Ed
Barnette, who resigned from the post effective March 1.
25 YEARS AGO
from the Baker City Herald
February 19, 1997
The Eltrym theater has new owners for the fi rst time in
51 years.
A new look and a new sound are coming soon, too.
The owners are Rudyard Coltman, a Baker City attorney,
and his wife, Forest.
The couple, who moved here in August from Eugene,
bought the 57-year-old, 500-seat theater from Western
Amusement Inc. of Pacifi c Palisades, Calif., which had
owned the Eltrym since 1946.
The Coltmans plan to close the theater, at 1809 First
St., beginning Friday for a month-long renovation during
which they will remodel portions of the building’s interior
and exterior, as well as install a new stereo sound system
and fi lm projector.
10 YEARS AGO
from the Baker City Herald
February 20, 2012
Powder Valley just seems to have Pine Eagle’s number
this season.
The teams met for the third time Saturday — this time
for the title in the District 7-1A girls basketball tournament
— and for the third time the Lady Badgers were victorious.
Powder Valley won the fi rst regular season meeting by
four points, and in the second prevailed in overtime.
Saturday, in the Baker High School gym, Powder had
to overcome a second-quarter rally by Pine Eagle to earn
the district title and a fi rst round bye in the Class 1A state
playoffs.
ONE YEAR AGO
from the Baker City Herald
February 20, 2021
Peter Johnson is not the sort who begrudges a blizzard.
But even as someone who depends on snow, Johnson
concedes that it’s possible for a little too much to fall a
little too rapidly.
As much as 4 feet of powder in less than a week, for
instance.
The positive part of this frozen onslaught is that it
accumulated on the ski runs at Anthony Lakes Mountain
Resort, where Johnson is the general manager.
In the midst of a rather lackluster winter, the series of
potent Pacifi c storms that have plowed through Oregon the
past several days were welcome.
But because skiers and snowboarders have to drive
to the resort, and because they like to park when they get
there, this wintry barrage, even as it created conditions
that skiers dream about, was causing a nightmare for
Anthony Lakes’ maintenance crew.
They had 9 miles of steep road to plow.
And a couple of acres of parking lots.
“Our crew’s been at it since 6 a.m. Wednesday (Feb.
17),” Johnson said on Thursday morning. “And they’re still
going.”
The weather offered only a brief respite for the
beleaguered plow drivers as they prepared the ski area
for its opening Thursday morning. Snow tapered off late
Wednesday, but the latest storm arrived Thursday and
added another half a foot or so to the ski area’s base.
Anthony Lakes is open Thursday through Sunday.
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SENIOR MENUS
MONDAY (Feb. 21): Closed for Presidents Day
TUESDAY (Feb. 22): Chicken and broccoli fettuccine, mixed
vegetables, garlic bread, cottage cheese and fruit, peach crisp
WEDNESDAY (Feb. 23): Pork roast, red potatoes, carrots, rolls,
applesauce, birthday cake
THURSDAY (Feb. 24): Hot turkey sandwich, mashed potatoes
with gravy, mixed vegetables, fruit cup, lemon squares
FRIDAY (Feb. 25): Spaghetti, garlic bread, broccoli, green
salad, cookies
MONDAY (Feb. 28): Baked ham, candied yams, mixed
vegetables, rolls, green salad, brownies
Public luncheon at the Senior Center, 2810 Cedar St., from
11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; $5 donation (60 and older), $7.50
for those under 60.
CONTACT THE HERALD
2005 Washington Ave., Suite 101
Open Monday through Friday
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Closures and staffing shortages are making
pharmacies less accessible for many Oregonians
BY JAMIE GOLDBERG
oregonlive.com
Rick Meis drives an hour and
a half through a winding can-
yon from his home in Halfway
every six weeks to pick up his
prescriptions at a Safeway phar-
macy in Baker City.
It’s an onerous process that
has only become tougher. One
local retail pharmacy in Baker
City closed shortly after Meis
moved to the rural Eastern Or-
egon community seven years
ago. Last fall, retail chain Bi-
Mart then announced it was
getting out of the pharmacy
business entirely. That left just
five pharmacies in all of Baker
County — two of which are in
hospitals or clinics and less ac-
cessible, and one which Meis
says is currently without a full-
time pharmacist.
The result for customers
has been long lines and diffi-
culty contacting overworked
pharmacy staff. Meis spent
several days in December
calling Safeway before he was
finally able to get through to
someone who could tell him
his prescription was ready.
He arrived at the pharmacy
shortly after it opened but still
had to wait 30 minutes to get
his medication. Friends have
said they waited two hours at
busier times later in the day.
“It’s truly a crisis for people
who live rurally, especially older
people,” said Meis, 69.
Between closures and pan-
demic-related staffing short-
ages, pharmacies are becoming
less accessible to many Ore-
gonians at a time when their
services are in greater demand
than ever.
There are 731 active retail
and hospital pharmacies in
Oregon, according to data pro-
vided by the Oregon Pharmacy
Bureau. That is 41 fewer than
in 2016.
Roughly 60% of the coun-
ties in the state have fewer than
two pharmacies per 10,000
residents. Two, Wheeler and
Sherman counties, don’t have
any pharmacies at all.
Even before the pandemic,
independent pharmacies said
they were being squeezed by
rising costs and declining re-
imbursement rates that made
it harder to stay open, much
less hire sufficient staff.
The pandemic has exac-
erbated those issues. Phar-
macies have become the
first stop for many to receive
COVID-19 tests and vaccines,
but staffing shortages have
made it harder for pharmacies
to keep up with demand.
“You’re seeing burnout with
a lot of pharmacists in Ore-
gon and across the country,”
said Huy Hoang, a pharmacy
professor at Pacific University
and a floating pharmacist for
CVS/Target. “You’re seeing
a lot of pharmacies closing
down, mainly in the indepen-
dent pharmacy sector, and
now even the big chains are
having to close some of their
stores because they’re trying
to catch up on two to three
weeks of prescriptions.”
He said independent phar-
macies have watched their
profit margins shrink as phar-
macy benefit managers have
reduced their reimbursements.
There’s little they can do, he
said, because only three cor-
porations control 75% of the
U.S. market, according to Drug
Channels, a pharmaceutical
ISSN-8756-6419
Serving Baker County since 1870
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Karrine Brogoitti
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Jayson Jacoby, editor
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Published Tuesdays, Thursdays and
Saturdays except Christmas Day by the
Baker Publishing Co., a part of EO Media
Group, at 2005 Washington Ave., Suite 101
(P.O. Box 807), Baker City, OR 97814.
Subscription rates per month are $10.75
for print only. Digital-only rates are $8.25.
Postmaster: Send address changes to
the Baker City Herald, P.O. Box 807, Baker
City, OR 97814.
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at Pendleton, Oregon 97801
Copyright © 2022
economics newsletter.
Oregon Democratic Sen.
Ron Wyden has pushed for
reform in the industry and
an investigation into business
practices by pharmacy benefit
managers.
“Pharmacies are one of the
most accessible health care pro-
vider services that communi-
ties have,” Hoang said. “When
closures happen, patients, es-
pecially in rural communities,
have to travel a lot further for
the nearest health care provider
service and that just makes it
more difficult for people to get
the care they need.”
Oregon Employment De-
partment estimates indicate
that the number of open jobs
at pharmacies has skyrocketed
during the pandemic.
There were an estimated 680
postings for pharmacist jobs
and 1,303 job postings for phar-
macy technician jobs in Ore-
gon per year from mid-2019 to
mid-2021, according to an em-
ployment department analysis
of online job posting data from
Help Wanted Online. That
compares to an estimated 211
pharmacist job postings and
458 pharmacy technician job
postings in a normal year.
That mirrors what those
who work in the industry have
seen on the ground.
Hoang said there had been
a spike in burned out pharma-
cists and underpaid pharmacy
technicians leaving the indus-
try as the pandemic has in-
creased the workload. In some
cases, he said, a lack of tech-
nicians is forcing pharmacists
to take on even more work to
keep pharmacies open.
During the public health
emergency, Oregon is allow-
ing companies to hire phar-
macists who hold licenses in
other states in an attempt to
fill the void.
Ryan Thueson, a regional
pharmacy leader for Rite Aid
who manages pharmacies in
central and southern Ore-
gon, has seen firsthand how
challenging it is to fill vacant
pharmacist and pharmacy
technician jobs right now. The
Rite Aid in Florence has been
without a full-time pharma-
cist for three months and has
only been able to open when
a floating pharmacist is avail-
able to come to the store.
“There are a lot of pharma-
cies right now that are limit-
ing hours, limiting days be-
cause there’s a lack of staffing,
both with pharmacists and
pharmacy technicians,” Thue-
son said.
Those temporary closures
are causing uncertainty for pa-
tients who may find themselves
with fewer COVID-19 testing
and vaccine options, or may
be unable to fill prescriptions
when they need them.
News of Record
DEATHS
James Allison: 76, of Baker City, died
Feb. 16, 2022, at his home, surrounded
by his family. A celebration of his life will
take place Saturday, March 12 at 3 p.m.
at the Harvest Christian Church, 3720
Birch St. in Baker City. Arrangements are
under the direction of Tami’s Pine Valley
Funeral Home & Cremation Services,
P.O. Box 543, Halfway, OR 97834.
Online condolences can be shared at
tamispinevalleyfuneralhome.com.
FUNERALS PENDING
Telephone: 541-523-3673
Samantha O’Conner/Baker City Herald, File
Customers wait in line for the pharmacy at the Baker City Safeway
store on Nov. 4, 2021.
Rhonda Culley: A celebration of her
life will take place on Saturday, Feb. 26,
at 1 p.m. at the Community Connection
Senior Center, 2810 Cedar St., in Baker
City. For those who would like to make a
memorial donation in honor of Rhonda,
the family suggests Heart ’N Home
Hospice through Tami’s Pine Valley
Funeral Home & Cremation Services,
P.O. Box 543, Halfway, OR 97834.
Online condolences can be shared at
tamispinevalleyfuneralhome.com.
James Bacon: Memorial service with
military honors will take place Saturday,
March 12, at the Harvest Church,
3720 Birch St. in Baker City. Memorial
donations in Jim’s name can be made
to the Powder River Sportsmen’s Club
rifle range, through Tami’s Pine Valley
Funeral Home & Cremation Services,
P.O. Box 543, Halfway, OR 97834.
Online condolences can be shared at
tamispinevalleyfuneralhome.com.
POLICE LOG
Baker City Police
Arrests, citations
PROBATION VIOLATION: Chuck Wayne
Briney, 28, Baker City, 10:40 a.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 16, at Campbell and
Ash streets; cited and released.
Baker County Sheriff’s Office
Arrests, citations
FOURTH-DEGREE ASSAULT,
HARASSMENT: Holly Melinda Cooney,
47, Halfway, 9:01 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 17,
in Halfway; jailed.
DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF
INTOXICANTS: Anthony Michael Rino,
35, Baker City, 12:40 a.m. Thursday, Feb.
17, at Auburn Avenue and Third Street.
Caroline Butler learned that
the Rite Aid pharmacy in Flor-
ence no longer had a full-time
pharmacist when she went to
fill a prescription in November.
Staff told her the pharmacy was
closed, and they didn’t know
when it would reopen.
Butler said the store’s website
still showed regular hours for
the pharmacy. At one point,
Butler said the pharmacy was
still accepting appointments
for COVID-19 testing and vac-
cinations, only for patients to
learn when they arrived that
those services weren’t avail-
able. (That issue has since been
fixed, Thueson said.)
“It ended up being several
days before I got my prescrip-
tion because I had to have it
transferred to Florence Phar-
macy,” Butler said. “I was
having health issues at the
time, and it definitely made it
much worse.”
Bi-Mart pointed to increased
costs and declining reimburse-
ments, along with Oregon’s
corporate activity tax, when it
announced its decision to close
its pharmacies last September.
Those closures alone have put
a significant strain on Oregon’s
pharmacy industry.
Bi-Mart had said its patient
files would be transferred to
nearby Walgreens locations
and that Walgreens staff would
operate pharmacies within Bi-
Mart locations in areas where
the drug store didn’t have a
nearby location.
But that hasn’t been the case
in many locales. Walgreens is
only operating pharmacies in-
side six Bi-Mart stores across
Oregon. While patient files have
been transferred to Walgreens
stores in many cities, that still
leaves 31 communities with
fewer pharmacy options than
before. And in locations where
there aren’t any nearby Wal-
greens stores, other pharmacies
have had to pick up the slack.
Jeanne Mendazona, the
owner and pharmacist at
Hometown Drugs in Madras
and owner of three other inde-
pendent pharmacies in Oregon,
said she had taken on many for-
mer Bi-Mart patients. Home-
town Drugs and Safeway are
the only two retail pharmacies
operating within the city.
With the influx of new pa-
tients and the added responsi-
bility of providing COVID-19
testing and vaccinations on top
of other vaccinations, Menda-
zona said she has often worked
until midnight filling prescrip-
tions. That schedule isn’t sus-
tainable, she said, and it could
in fact be dangerous if phar-
macists are asked to continue
to take on more responsibility
in the face of ongoing closures
and staffing shortages.
“It is life and death in a
pharmacy,” Mendazona said.
“We’re not making hamburg-
ers. If I put mustard on your
burger and you don’t like
mustard, you’re probably not
going to die.”
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