ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — If your local pharmacy is closed or you’re having a tough time getting an appointment over the next three days, it might be because of what some are calling "Pharmageddon."
It's a nationwide pharmacy worker walkout over what they consider to be unfair working conditions.
“It’s the workload and patient safety. 100%,” said one pharmacy tech worker who wanted to remain anonymous.
She and hundreds of other pharmacy tech workers around the nation say they're stressed, overwhelmed and concerned mistakes could be made.
“You know, if you’re supposed to get a blood pressure medication and you end up getting a blood thinner, it’s scary,” she said.
Pharmageddon is a collective, simultaneous walkout by workers at three of the nation's largest pharmacies – Walgreens, CVS and Rite Aid.
Many workers say they're forced to skip lunch and work breaks to administer vaccines to patients every 15 minutes, with some needing multiple shots – all while trying to accurately fill hundreds of prescriptions, which end up delayed.
That angers customers.
“We are the middleman. I try to do de-escalation because I know it’s frustrating for that patient and they don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes, and they don’t know that it’s not us," the pharmacy tech said. "That is higher up."
The three-day walkout could mean some patients will have an even harder time getting prescriptions filled. But customers we spoke with say they sympathize with the pharmacy workers.
“I understand that these medications are necessary and could affect somebody without it, but the strike is also necessary, and they do what they need to do. I was just three days,” Katie Terrana said.
“People should get reasonable breaks,” John Serafine said. “And if they are overworked, if they are required to work overtime, maybe it's time to staff up."
On the first day of Pharmageddon, there were no widespread issues being reported at local pharmacies in the Tampa Bay area.
Nationally, CVS recently promised additional staffing, paid overtime and lunch breaks.
Walgreens has vowed to increase pharmacist wages and is even offering hiring bonuses to attract and retain them.