Earlier this month, the mega pharmacy chain Walgreens announced that it would be closing 12 stores in San Francisco city-wide. Those locations are 1201 Taraval St., 3201 Divisadero St., 1363 Divisadero St., 825 Market St., 1750 Noriega St., 5280 Geary Blvd., 1524 Polk St., 1301 Franklin St., 1189 Potrero Ave., 135 Powell St., 5300 3rd St., and Ingleside’s 1630 Ocean Ave.
In the weeks before it closed, the shelves were increasingly empty with certain aisles closed off.
In a statement, the company said closures were due to “increased regulatory and reimbursement pressures [hindering their] ability to cover the costs associated with rent, staffing, and supply needs.”
Many San Francisco residents rely on the pharmacy chain, and according to the San Francisco Standard, after the closures over 65,000 San Franciscans will lose the only pharmacy in their neighborhood. Though, not everybody is affected equally.
Joshua Greenbaum ’25, resident of Westwood Park, said, “My family now has to find another Walgreens to get medication from. It means more time taken out of our day that could be spent working or spending time with family. The Walgreens closing doesn’t create a huge issue for us. It just means that something like walking down the street to get a card will now take just a few minutes longer.”
After its closure on Feb. 27, workers removed the Walgreens sign on the side of the building, but the name was still visible.
Receipts from closing stores tell customers where the closest Walgreens location is that will remain open.
San Francisco is not the only place affected by these closures, though. The company also announced that they will close over 1,200 stores in the country over the course of the next three years in an effort to increase earnings and decrease costs.
According to CNN, retail analyst Neil Saunders said the closings were “emblematic of a company that is in trouble and is trying to course correct.”
These closings would be highly significant, and potentially harmful to thousands of Americans nationwide.
