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Pharmacy To Distribute Free Medications Friday In Charlotte

NC MedAssist
NC MedAssist is partnering with Charlotte-based Atrium Health to host a drive-thru mobile pharmacy event on July 16 for individuals in need of over-the-counter medications.

A mobile pharmacy will distribute free over-the-counter medications this Friday in Charlotte.

The drive-thru event, hosted by NC MedAssist in partnership with Atrium Health, will be held at the Camino Community Center from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. All medicine is distributed for free on a first-come, first-serve basis. Participants must be at least 18 to receive the medicine, and no identification is required. In order to comply with local COVID-19 distancing guidelines, participants are required to stay in their vehicles.

Items will be distributed in bags that include allergy medication, cough and cold medicine, vitamins, first aid supplies and other over-the-counter medicines. Participants will have the option to customize the bags for children's medication. One thousand bags will be available.

COVID-19 vaccines will be available on-site for participants and administered by Atrium Health.

The Mobile Free Pharmacy program, which began in 2014, provides free over-the-counter medication to different locations in North Carolina each week, according to Sheila Kidwell, director of foundations and communications at NC MedAssist.

Each event distributes approximately $100,000 worth of over-the-counter medicine and serves an average of 800 individuals, Kidwell said.

The program has seen an increase in participants since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kidwell said. The program, which shifted to a drive-thru format in 2020, served nearly 40,000 people in the past fiscal year, doubling the amount served prior to the pandemic.

“Due to the pandemic, we had to create a new and innovative way to continue serving the community,” she said in a press release. “We understand there is a pressing need, especially in the midst of allergy season. Our goal in this partnership with Atrium Health is to improve the health of the community, one family at a time.”

The Mobile Free Pharmacy program is among other initiatives by NC MedAssist to provide free prescription medicine to low-income, uninsured North Carolina residents. The organization also offers the Free Pharmacy Program, which mails free pharmacy medication to a patient's home, and the OTC Free Store in west Charlotte distributes free over-the-counter medications and medical supplies.

Another mobile pharmacy event will be held July 30 at the Central United Methodist Church in Monroe from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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Kamille Houston is a WFAE intern covering stories grounded in community outreach and engagement. She is currently studying English at the University of Pennsylvania, where she writes on race and equity for the student newspaper The Daily Pennsylvanian.