Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 7, 1994 TAG: 9404070204
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E-16 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: NANCY BELL STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Managed health care plans, prescription networks and mail order - the buzzwords of modern pharmacy - are changing the way drugstores are run.
The Kennedys, both pharmacists, have owned and managed Sanco Drug since 1974. In that time, they have built a base of loyal customers.
Now, because of changes in the health-care industry governing prescription plans, the Kennedys say they are watching some 20-year customers walk out the door for the last time, because insurance plans tell patients where to buy drugs.
The Kennedys said they are hanging on by keeping overhead down, which also helps them keep prescription prices competitive. And they continue to offer a component most chains cannot - familiar faces and personal service.
Splitting duty behind the pharmacy counter is one way the Kennedys keep costs down. Their only employee, Diane Marr, has been at Sanco almost as long as they have. Marr and the Kennedys are on a first-name basis with many customers, stopping to answer questions about prescriptions or to ask about the family.
Sanco carries a complete line of over-the-counter medications and supplies, greeting cards and essentials so that customers stopping in for prescriptions can pick up other items they need.
The Kennedys joined the realm of independent pharmacies at a time when prospects were good.
"My husband is an independent person. He wanted to own his own business and run a pharmacy the way he thought it should be run," Tracy Kennedy said.
When the opportunity came 20 years ago for Robert Kennedy to leave a chain drugstore for business ownership, he didn't hesitate.
During the 1980s, the Kennedys prospered. Sanco Drugs, located at the former Dudley's Service Station where Riverland Drive meets Garden City Boulevard, became a popular neighborhood pharmacy.
Tracy Kennedy, then a computer programmer, went to pharmacy school to help her husband keep up with the demand. The couple divided their time filling prescriptions and running the store.
Then, with the 1990s, came the industry wide problem of prescription-cost disparities. It began, Robert Kennedy said, when insurance companies started offering exclusive prescription contracts through competitive bidding.
Independent, or "neighborhood," pharmacies do not always have equal opportunities to bid on employee prescription plans, he said.
"The perception is that [chain pharmacies] are cheaper and that we are more expensive," he said. "But that is not necessarily true." The Kennedys keep current on what other drug stores are charging for prescriptions and adjust prices accordingly.
"It's in our best interests to make sure our customers get the best prices they can," Tracy Kennedy said.
To combat the inevitable effects of competing with the big guys, she wrote Hillary Rodham Clinton asking for help on behalf of all independent pharmacies.
She advises consumers who are concerned about the rising costs of medicine to complain directly to their insurance companies. The Kennedys also contribute to a legal defense fund that protects the interests of small pharmacies like their own.
"I love this business and the people who come in here," Tracy Kennedy said. "It's hard seeing it go down for reasons that seem beyond our control."
Sanco Drug Inc. is at 1270 Riverland Road in Roanoke. The phone number is (703) 427-3302.
by CNB