Walgreens Turns To Robots To Help Ease Manpower Shortage

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc WBA is planning to seek the help of automation for its drugstores to ease the pressure of the lack of manpower.
The company, faced with a shortage of pharmacists and pharmacist technicians, is setting up a network of automated, centralized drug-filling centers.
Walgreens' plan would cut the pharmacist workloads by at least 25% in addition to saving more than $1 billion a year in costs, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Through automation, pharmacists will have more time to attend to requirements, including vaccinations, patient outreach, and medical prescription.
The COVID-19 pandemic has created more demand for pharmacies as they took on the jobs of vaccination and testing.
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"Small chains up through the larger chains are all facing the labor shortage as well as increased demand for services," the report quoted Alecia Lashier, chief automation officer at iA.
iA is a provider of pharmacy automation software and technology in which Walgreens is a majority investor.
Price Action: WBA shares are trading higher by 0.64% at $31.60 in premarket on the last check Monday.