ALLENTOWN, Pa. – After eight decades in business, Walter’s Pharmacy in Allentown is closing for good Friday.
Howard Anthony, the owner, bought it in the late ’90s.
“We started on 13th and Hamilton in 1937,” Anthony said.
He says it’s time to retire and, unfortunately, local pharmacies are a dying breed.
“And this is where the healthcare takes place. It’s not just put a pill in your mouth. It’s the attention and the care we give people,” Anthony said.
A recent study showed nearly 10,000 small pharmacies closed from 2009 to 2015.
“It’s a very sad thing. I mean just this morning I was talking to one of our customers whose mother was a customer here,” Anthony said. “I don’t know why that’s not appreciated, I just don’t understand why it’s marginalized.”
Employees were told Monday they’d be out of a job by the end of the week, joining the millions of Americans already out of work.
Customers’ prescriptions have been transferred, ironically, to CVS.
“It’s a shame it has to come to an end,” Anthony said.