Ribbon Cut On Grand Pharmacy

Where once was pizza is now low-cost prescription medication — and the latest expansion of a Fair Haven-anchoring community health hub.

That pizzeria-to-pharmacy transformation completed on Tuesday morning, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of Grand Pharmacy at 111 Grand Ave.

Mayor Justin Elicker, State Senate President Pro Tem Martin Looney, Fair Haven Alder Sarah Miller, and East Rock/Fair Haven Alder Caroline Tanbee Smith, among other officials and healthcare workers turned out to welcome the new Fair Haven Community Health Care (FHCHC) operation, which is located at the long-time former home of Grand Apizza.

“Opening and running a pharmacy is no small undertaking,” FHCHC CEO Suzanne Lagarde said. ​“However, we’ve recognized the need for affordable medications for our patients, and we’ve taken on this task with a singular focus of ensuring that our patients have easy and affordable access to life-altering medications.”

Lagarde was referring to the pharmacy being a part of the federal 340B pricing program, which allows for medications to be sold at discounted prices for healthcare organizations that serve low-income patient populations. She provided an example with the pricing of an EpiPen. The injection device, which typically costs $293.40 at retail, is sold at the Grand Pharmacy at its government-reduced price of $28 plus a small dispense fee, ranging from $3.50 to $15 depending on household income. 

Lagarde said that the pharmacy is for anyone to walk in and use, and especially emphasized uninsured and underinsured communities to utilize the resource.

Dr. Emmanuel Martinez Alcaraz, a clinician at the 374 Grand St. FHCHC clinic, noted that the decreased prices help many Spanish-speaking clients in New Haven on a cultural level. He referred to the Spanish word humilde, which he translated as ​“humble,” but in a ​“shameful” light. 

“Because of high healthcare costs, there’s a certain level of shame when you can’t afford medication,” Martinez Alcaraz said of the Latino community. ​“And you don’t want to go back to the clinic and tell them ​‘I couldn’t treat my bacterial infection because I couldn’t afford it.’”

Martinez Alcaraz added that there will be at least one bilingual provider at the pharmacy at all hours.

Lagarde emphasized increased communication as a distinguishing aspect of this pharmacy, with pharmacists and clinicians sharing electronic medical records with each other. This contrasts starkly with the norm — since pharmacies are usually owned by a different entity, like CVS, there is no incentive, according to Martinez Alcaraz, for pharmacies and clinicians to share electronic medical records, delineating the wrap-around care a patient might need.

The shared electronic medical records would mean that, when a doctor prescribes a medication to a patient, a pharmacist will be able to see a patient’s entire medical record and past history of drug interaction. The two will also be in constant communication, with clinicians being able to see which drugs are available at the pharmacy and how much they will cost.

“You’re less likely to have issues [with] medications that might not interact,” Martinez Alcaraz said of the increased transparency with pharmacists.

He said on a normal day, he sees about 24 patients at the 111 Grand Ave. location. When he’s done with each one, he has his Microsoft Teams chat open to talk with pharmacists to see if the medication is in stock. If there isn’t, he will order the medication, which will arrive the next day. If a patient is not able to come in person to the pharmacy, the Grand Pharmacy is also equipped with four vehicles to deliver the medications to them on the same day at no cost.

Because the pharmacy is a non-profit and independent, all funds will go back into the clinic and the pharmacy for the community. Martinez Alcaraz mentioned that the revenue could go to avenues like hiring more care coordinators that could help patients with community partners that help with housing or immigration support.

“I’m…making a plea to anyone in our community who’s struggling to pay for the high cost of meds, speak to one of our pharmacists if it makes sense for you to transfer your care to our health system,” Lagarde said. ​“Then, you too can benefit from this ability to provide you with steeply discounted medications.”