The drugs are in the mail

Stephen Wiley remembers his competition with mail-order pharmacies every time his business gets questions about mailorder drugs.

"The irony is that patients still call you if they have questions," said Wiley, president of Wiley's Pharmacies, which has locations in Lancaster, Millersville and Quarryville. "The sad thing is that they're calling us about the prescription they got through a mailorder pharmacy"

Retail pharmacies worry about more insurers and employers turning to mail-order pharmacies in an attempt to lower employees' prescription-drug costs. This anxiety was highlighted in early September when Rite Aid Corp. in East Pennsboro Township lowered its sales and income expectations for fiscal-year 2005. The Cumberland County company blamed the popularity of mail-order pharmacies.

Retail pharmacies are far from extinct in Central Pennsylvania. In fact, Wiley said his business continues to grow However, supporters of retail pharmacists said they fear that could change, especially if area businesses start requiring employees to use mail-order pharmacies. "We would have a lot more new patients if it weren't for mail-order," Wiley said.