We have to have local pharmacies because when a person goes to a doctor and needs their medication right now, they do not have time to wait for it to be delivered by mail.
Yes, people can get many things online but we still need a way to get the medications same day.
We lost the two nearby pharmacies here last year. We have to drive much further now to get to one. But with services like Grubhub, DoorDash, etc., we have been able to get same-day deliveries of most things. (Walgreens has same-day delivery of prescriptions now.) Of course, it costs; and I imagine some controlled drugs can’t be delivered.
dforest wrote, “Yes, people can get many things online but we still need a way to get the medications same day.”
The likely place will be at hospitals...mail order not required, but security is.