When discount retailer Fred’s closed its doors in Kemper County Oct. 18, it closed the last pharmacy in the entire county.
Fred’s was located in the county seat of DeKalb, a town with only about 1,000 residents. Rural Kemper County, in east central Mississippi, has fewer than 10,000 residents according to 2017 Census figures, reports the Clarion Ledger.
Rural health care is in trouble in Mississippi. Of 64 rural hospitals in the state, nearly half are at “high financial risk,” according to a report released in February. DeKalb’s hospital, the John C. Stennis Memorial Hospital, isn’t on that list, yet. Nationwide, one out of every five rural hospitals are at risk of closing, meaning more of Mississippi’s rural hospitals are risk than those in most other states. Only Alabama’s rate of risk is higher, and Mississippi has far more rural hospitals than our neighbor to the east.
Folks in DeKalb will now have to travel to Meridian or Philadelphia, Miss., to get a prescription filled. That’s about an hour’s travel round-trip. It’s a burden, especially for elderly and poor people with limited resources and limited ability to get around.
“Our most critical patients, the ones usually on multiple prescriptions, it’s a huge hurdle for them, having access to solid and reliable transportation,” Ryan Harper, president of the Mississippi Board of Pharmacy, told the Ledger.
“It’s unfortunate but it’s something we’re just going to have to deal with,” DeKalb Mayor Clark Adams told the Ledger, at least for the foreseeable future. Adams said three pharmacies have shown an interest in opening in Kemper County, but no one has yet made a commitment, and the process could take six months or longer.
Fred’s closed its doors in Vicksburg on July 6, and the space was filled by Roses. In all, the chain closed 441 stores across the country this year, leaving only 80 stores open. Mississippi still has a few Fred’s open, having lost about 70 percent of the stores in the state.