Boston residents concerned of ‘pharmacy desert’ as closure of another Walgreens nears

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BOSTON — A major drugstore chain is shutting down another location in Boston in just a matter of days and people who live in the area are concerned that they are now living in a “pharmacy desert.”

The Walgreens at 416 Warren Street in Roxbury will shut its doors for good come Martin Luther King Jr. Day, becoming the chain’s fourth city location to close in a little over a year.

In late 2022, Walgreens suddenly shuttered locations in Mattapan, Hyde Park, and on Washington Street in Roxbury.

Some Boston City Councilors have blasted the company for closing stores in predominantly Black, Brown, and working-class communities, forcing residents to travel further to pick up their medication.

Current customers of the Warren Street pharmacy will have their prescriptions transferred to the location at 1890 Columbus Avenue, which is about a 20-minute walk away, the company said in a statement to the Boston Globe.

Walgreens said in 2022 that it looked at the dynamics of the local market and buying habits before closing the other three stores.

A local group opposed to this latest closure plans to hold a rally on Friday afternoon.

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