By Ken Perez, Chief Strategy Officer and Director of Health Policy
The pharmacy technician shortage, which has existed for over a decade, crested in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as over three-quarters of community pharmacists reported that they were having a tough time filling open positions in 2022, according to a survey conducted by the National Community Pharmacists Association. More than 88% of the survey respondents identified finding pharmacy technicians as their top problem.1
Moreover, this serious shortage has continued. A McKinsey survey of health-system pharmacy leaders conducted in April 2023 found that pharmacy technician was the most understaffed role in both acute and retail settings, with 81% understaffing of acute pharmacy technicians and 62% understaffing of retail pharmacy technicians.2 One writer observed, “Pharmacies across the nation are facing an unprecedented labor crunch. Open positions can remain unfilled for months, and in some areas, the vacancy persists for a year or more.”3
Turnover and Reasons for Leaving the Profession
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that about 10% of the pharmacy technician workforce will turn over each year through 2033, due to workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.4
Why do pharmacy technicians leave the profession? In addition to the widely reported experience of burnout by healthcare workers in general and pharmacy technicians in particular during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s 2022 online survey of 20,000 certified and non-certified pharmacy technicians found these specific leading reasons:
- 75% – lack of pay
- 72% – lack of career opportunities
- 71% – volume/workload
- 68% – staffing shortages
- 61% – general working conditions
Regarding lack of pay for pharmacy technicians, overall average hourly rates in 2022 ranged from just $16.57 to $24.53 depending on the practice setting.5 (In comparison, most California fast-food workers are now earning at least $20 an hour.6)
Adverse Impacts
The volume/workload and staffing shortage issues clearly reflect the adverse impact of understaffing on employed pharmacy technicians. In addition, the pharmacy technician shortage often forces pharmacists to perform pharmacy technician tasks, which is obviously suboptimal and contributes to their burnout and job dissatisfaction. This is especially problematic, because pharmacists are increasingly engaging in patient care activities—in part due to the primary care physician shortage—but also because of heightened demand for pharmacy services by Baby Boomers to address the greater prevalence of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension. As a result, pharmacy technicians will need to take on bigger roles in pharmacy operations—often doing tasks previously done by pharmacists.
From a business standpoint, high pharmacy technician turnover and the lack of available, qualified staff to handle any increased workload may prevent pharmacies from pursuing new business opportunities, such as adherence packaging.
In addition, understaffing, burnout, and turnover can contribute to medication errors.
Perhaps due in part to the pharmacy technician shortage, the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS), the largest repository of patient safety data in the United States, observed a 20% increase in medication error reports and a 30% rise in medication error-related serious events from 2022 to 2023.6
Conclusion
The pharmacy technician shortage is a significant, widespread, and long-standing problem that gained visibility during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has persisted largely because of unfavorable economics—inadequate wages for pharmacy technicians. The resultant understaffing—in the face of increasing demands for pharmacy services and pharmacists performing more patient care activities—has resulted in negative operational, financial and clinical outcomes.
References
- National Community Pharmacists Association, “Survey: Three-Quarters of Community Pharmacies Report Staff Shortages,” Aug. 11, 2022.
- Bowen, B., et al., “Untapped opportunities for health system pharmacies,” Nov. 7, 2023.
- Swanson, J., “Can Pharmacy Automation Help Solve the Industry’s Labor Shortage,” Pharmacy Times, May 24, 2024.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Occupational Labor Handbook: Pharmacy Technicians,” accessed Nov. 4, 2024.
- Pharmacy Technician Certification Board, “The State of the Pharmacy Technician Workforce,” accessed Nov. 4, 2024.
- Picchi, A., “California’s fast-food workers are now the highest paid in U.S. with new $20 per hour wage,” April 1, 2024.
- Kepner, S. and Jones, R., “Patient Safety Trends in 2023: An Analysis of 287,997 Serious Events and Incidents From the Nation’s Largest Event Reporting Database,” Patient Safety, April 22, 2024.