LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — As the summer COVID wave continues here in Arkansas, some Arkansans have been turning to their local pharmacies for Paxlovid.
However, getting your hands on the COVID medication could be challenging as several pharmacies have had a hard time keeping enough of the medication in stock.
"There is a manufacturer, wholesaler, back order that some pharmacies might be experiencing. It's not all pharmacies or all wholesalers. Another thing to consider is that some health plans are not covering the service at all," said Bri Morris, Vice President of Innovation at the Arkansas Pharmacists Association.
If they are covering it, Morris said patients with high deductibles might have to pay a high copay which could inhibit access.
"What we see most of all, though, is reimbursement challenges with this medication. It's about $1,400 it's a very expensive medication," Morris added.
She said that's what makes it more difficult for some pharmacies to keep it in stock.
"I have to pay for it from a wholesaler in a very short amount of time, but I don't get reimbursed from a plan for a long time," she explained. "So that creates a cash flow discrepancy, and it's really difficult to run a pharmacy, run a business, be able to provide health care to the community when you have that kind of a challenge."
Owner of Kavanaugh Pharmacy, Anne Pace, said that's the struggle that she has also been facing.
"When Paxlovid was being sent to us from the government, initially, when it first came out and the government was subsidizing all of it, we would have 20 [to] 30, boxes of Paxlovid on our shelves at any given time," she described.
Now, it's a challenge to keep a few in stock because they have to buy it commercially.
"It's a difficult thing for us to keep multiple boxes of it. Just order more. We don't necessarily, or we aren't necessarily able to do that because of the cost," she explained.
As for the solution, Morris said state legislation can help.
"Some states have been successful with legislating this product so that pharmacists can get paid for the product and be able to carry that. So that's not something we have here in Arkansas, but we would like to see," Morris said.
Pace said some good news though is that most people with COVID don't need Paxlovid to manage their symptoms, but she encourages you to talk with your doctor about the best treatment plan.
According to the Arkansas Department of Health's COVID dashboard, statewide, we have had 72 COVID hospitalizations reported in the last seven days.
However, that number is up from what it was in mid-July.
Arkansas also continues to be ranked "very high" for COVID in wastewater, along with 18 other states.