I got my prescriptions filled at a Walgreens for a little while. The minimum amount of time I was in the store for a simple pickup of a prescription I had been told was “ready” was twenty minutes. They were obviously understaffed, but I never saw the same person twice. I had to show them my ID and insurance card every time, and I’m not even taking anything that can be abused. After my fourth or fifth agonizing visit, which took almost an hour, I searched for “independent pharmacy” as soon as I got home.

The independent pharmacist knows me by sight, is completely reliable, and has solved problems several times over the years. Doctors and nurses usually say something nice about her when I tell them which pharmacy I use. I will never go to a chain pharmacy again, and recommend that others don’t, either.