Town supervisor on the news of Pharmacy shutting prescription services
Shelter Island Town Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams said she found out like everyone else that the one pharmacy on the Island would cease fulfilling prescriptions in two weeks’ time. Someone called and told her the news. There had been no outreach from the Soloviev Group, the Shelter Island Heights Pharmacy’s owner, about the information that rocked the Island on Saturday.
Early Sunday afternoon, she told the Reporter she had quickly reached out to a member of the Soloviev Group who handles its real estate holdings on the Island, and was awaiting a response.
She began to outline a three-pronged plan of action. First, she would make a plea to the landlords of the Pharmacy to reconsider their action. She noted that it was short-sighted to just consider a basic bottom line of costs to fill prescriptions, when many people, including herself, will shop in the merchandise part of the pharmacy before and/or after the prescription is filled, or patronize the soda fountain. She will also tell the owner’s rep that serving a community is an important part of any business.
Secondly, Ms. Brach-Williams will ask for a delay on the closing date. “We need time,” she said, to put in place an alternative for those who need prescriptions, especially the frail elderly.
And the third idea is that she and Kelly Brochu, manager of the Town’s Senior Center, will begin looking to expand the Center’s “shopping assistance” program, which is grant funded. This is a program where a driver can take orders to shop at Target and Stop ‘N Shop and other venues in Riverhead for items for the elderly who can’t drive. The supervisor’s idea is to include pharmacies for prescriptions.
But the supervisor mentioned it wasn’t just the elderly who have mobility problems, but there are many older Islanders who don’t feel safe driving off-Island. She had spoken to a woman on Sunday morning who said her husband would be away for a period of time and she couldn’t see herself driving off-island for prescriptions.
Ms. Brach-Williams said it was time for action, to find solutions to the news that had stunned those who had received it, news that would profoundly change the Island.
As for those who are calling for a boycott of services at Soloviev-owned properties, Ms. Brach-Williams said that isn’t a wise way to go, since it could cost the jobs of many Islanders who live and work here.
Below is the Reporter’s original story from yesterday:
News has reached the Reporter that prescription service at the Shelter Island Heights Pharmacy will be shut down entirely as of October 7.
This will leave Islanders with no local access to fill prescriptions.
A letters is being sent to customers, and that is also available at the store, providing other information on off-Island pharmacies where prescriptions can be filled.
The Reporter is awaiting more information from a public relations firm that the Pharmacy manager, Lisa Hashagen, referred the Reporter to, which has not returned email requests for comment.
As word spread of the impending close, customers began to come by the Pharmacy for confirmation. Their reactions ranged from calm planning, to concern, to consternation. Some asked how to go about transferring prescriptions and were handed a letter that was going out to all customers today, Sept. 27, with a list of pharmacies.
One customer, Cristina Peffer, said she’d had to go to the pharmacy last week when she had a high fever, and wouldn’t have been able to travel to a pharmacy off-Island. She expressed concern that elderly people as well as those who were ill would suffer as a result. Another customer lamented the way that the Island was changing.
Several expressed relief to hear that Suzanne Scott and Greg Ofrias, who had run the pharmacy for decades, had stepped up to ensure that prescriptions could be filled at their Southold Pharmacy. They have a limited delivery service to the Island currently, and customers at the store and on social media expressed hope that deliveries could be arranged to serve the Island’s large elderly population.
The staff assured customers that the rest of the store would remain open, with the soda fountain, a beloved meeting spot for generations, continuing to serve food, beverages and ice cream.
Saturday morning, Lois Draegin stopped by the Pharmacy to pick up a newspaper. Several women ahead of her were picking up prescriptions. The pharmacist came out and told one woman that her medication wouldn’t be available until early next week. Then, Ms. Draegin recalled, the pharmacist said she might as well also tell her now, that as of Oct 7, the pharmacy would no longer be filling prescriptions.
The two women were in shock. The pharmacist was clearly upset, and had no explanation, other than attributing the decision to the owners, the Soloviev Group.
Here is the letter being sent to customers and that is also available at the store:
Dear Customer,
This letter is to inform you that the Shelter Island Heights Pharmacy will be permanently closing effective October 7, 2025 (the “Closing Date”).
[Note. Ms.Hashagen reiterated that just prescription services will cease Oct. 7. The soda fountain and merchandise areas will remain open.]
We are providing this written notice to ensure that you have adequate time to make arrangements for any ongoing prescription needs.
You may choose to transfer your prescriptions to a pharmacy of your choice at any time prior to the Closing Date. For your convenience, we have listed several nearby pharmacies below:
Southold Pharmacy, 53895 Main Road, Southold NY. 11971, 631-765-3434
Cutchogue Barth’s Pharmacy, 28195 Main Road, Cutchogue, NY, 11935, 631-734-6796
Colonial Drugs & Surgicals, 100 Front Street, Greenport, NY,. 11944, 631-477-1111
Greenport Drugs LLC, 74825A Main Road, Greenport. NY, 11944, 631-477-1222
Sag Harbor Pharmacy,120 Main Street, Sag Harbor, NY, 11963, 631-725-0074
White’s Apothecary, 20 Main Street, Sag Harbor, NY, 11960, 631-808-9090
To transfer your prescription(s), please contact the pharmacy of your choice directly using the contact information above. Any prescriptions that have not been transferred by the close of business on the Closing Date will be automatically transferred to the following pharmacy to ensure continuity of care:
Southold Pharmacy
53895 Main Road, Southold, NY. 11971
631-765-3434
If you have any questions regarding this closure, prescription transfers, or your medical records, please contact us at 631-749-0445.
Thank you for allowing us to serve you.
Sincerely, The Shelter Island Heights Pharmacy Team
Deputy Town Supervisor Meg Larsen posted on the Reporter’s Facebook page: “This will be a hardship and a burden for many people. I am working with the Senior Center to see how we can help our seniors get the meds they need while we try to sort out a solution for this profound loss. I’m also working on sorting this out for everyone else, too, not just seniors.”
More news will be published when it becomes available.
