Harrisburg, PA – Today, Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt highlighted the Department of State’s work to ensure Pennsylvanians retain access to life-saving medications despite the closure of hundreds of community and national pharmacies, demonstrating the Shapiro Administration’s commitment to cutting bureaucratic red tape and speeding up processing times for professional licenses.
“At Governor Shapiro’s direction, the Department of State has strengthened the Commonwealth’s pharmacy workforce by streamlining licensing processes for pharmacies and their professional staffs, which has helped protect Pennsylvanians’ timely access to the medications they need,” Schmidt said. “Collectively, these measures have helped ensure that new pharmacy counters have been able to open quickly so that patient care could continue uninterrupted.”
Previously, pharmacists in Pennsylvania had to wait 20 days on average to receive a license, and it similarly took the Department 20 days to process a pharmacy facility license. Today, it takes only four days to process a pharmacy facility license and just one day to process a pharmacist license. Taken together, these improvements have helped more pharmacists get on the job sooner – and more pharmacies open their doors to patients.
Since 2024, the Department has issued 1,644 pharmacist licenses – 764 of those licenses were granted to professionals who transferred to the Commonwealth from out of state – reflecting the Shapiro Administration’s success in streamlining the licensing process to get Pennsylvanians on the job quicker.
The Shapiro Administration has also implemented provisions in Act 34 of 2025, which have temporarily waived certain licensing requirements for over 100 qualified pharmacists so far, permitting pharmacies to rapidly mobilize staff where they are needed most. The Department has also prioritized and implemented a statewide registration program for pharmacy technicians that provides professional recognition, expands career opportunities, and builds a well-trained support network for pharmacies to better serve patients.
Pennsylvania has experienced the closure of 621 pharmacies — to include 416 Rite Aid facilities — since October 2023. Thanks to the Department’s efforts to ensure Pennsylvanians have access to the critical services, Pennsylvania has been able to open more than 120 new pharmacies, averaging the five new pharmacies opening a month across the Commonwealth.