Freshman Lacey Douglass recently learned that she can fill prescriptions on her way to class.
Douglass, a major in medical and laboratory science, is one of many students needing prescriptions filled regularly who are discovering the services at the new pharmacy on the ground floor of the Union.
The pharmacy officially opened on July 13 and was the last of the Union renovations.
Business has been slow since opening, but with Fall Semester in full swing, students are taking notice.
The pharmacy was built mostly for employees who complained about going all the way to the hospital to fill their prescriptions, said Sara Winn, one of the two pharmacists on staff. But it also serves students.
“I will most likely transfer my prescription,” Douglass said.
Currently only 10 students get their prescriptions filled at the pharmacy, but Susan Smith, the other pharmacist on staff, anticipates the number to increase.
“We expect for it to boom in the next month,” Smith said.
Winn believes that the reason, aside from the pharmacy’s convenient location, is the student and faculty discount given to those not covered by prescription insurance for filling a 90-day supply of medication, she said.
Students and faculty do not need to have a U insurance policy in order to get their prescriptions filled. Anyone can have their prescriptions transferred to the Union Pharmacy, Winn said, and students can purchase many common over-the-counter medications there as well.
Some parents are calling and setting up accounts for their college-age children, Winn said.
Shelley Croft, a senior in political science who works as a pharmacy technician off campus, said she would never pick up prescriptions on campus because of privacy issues.
“You might run into someone you know coming out,” she said. “Imagine picking up birth control and then seeing someone you know down the hall. It’s a privacy issue.”
Before the Union Pharmacy was open, the closest place to campus for students to pick up prescriptions was University Pharmacy at 1320 E. and 200 South.
Richard Rasmuson, the owner of University Pharmacy, said he’s not worried about losing student business because there are many students, and his clientele comes from all over the valley.
“Our prices are really competitive, and we give a student discount, and I expect that our hours are longer, and we offer more services,” he said.
The Union Pharmacy is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and is closed daily from 1:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.