"San Francisco Journal: A Pharmacy for the AIDS Epidemic"

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1992. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

"San Francisco Journal: A Pharmacy for the AIDS Epidemic"

New York Times (12/17/92), P. A24
Gross, Jane

Abstract: A gay-owned pharmacy, designed to serve the unusual needs of AIDS and HIV patients, recently opened in the Castro district in San Francisco. Paul A. Morabito, a 28-year-old investment banker with an expertise in health care, owns the Castro Village Pharmacy. He set out to identify what aspects of traditional pharmacies failed to meet AIDS patients' needs, and then sought to correct the problems with a combination of common sense and high technology. Morabito found one problem was the unavailability of specialized AIDS drugs in small pharmacies, which could not afford to stock the expensive offerings. Castro Village supplies with various AIDS pills, ointments, and infusions. Another problem Morabito discovered was the requirement imposed by virtually all pharmacies that customers pay up front for their drugs. As a result, Morabito inked a deal with the McKesson Corp., a pharmaceuticals distributor, convincing it to advance him the costly drugs and wait for payment after insurance reimbursement. Morabito established an array of computers, modems, fax machines, and automatic pill counters to facilitate filling prescriptions. He has developed a system that allows doctors to fax prescriptions and tap into a computer that shows them what other medications their patients are taking and how the different treatments interact. Also, patients can leave refill orders on the drug store's voice mail system.

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