Charitable Pharmacy Serves Needs Of Uninsured and Poor

Free prescriptions for the uninsured and the poor can radically improve the quality of life for thousands of people who use the St. Vincent de Paul Pharmacy in Dallas. When limited space presented concerns about providing patient care, a Catholic Foundation grant help optimize space used by the staff in the pursuit of serving others.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul of North Texas operates the first free-standing charitable pharmacy in Texas.

The pharmacy provides free prescriptions to the uninsured and the poor, covering a variety of chronic illnesses.

At 1,000 square feet, the need to optimize the space used by staff for efficiency was critical. With the support of a grant from The Catholic Foundation, the pharmacy is being renovated to allow the team to improve its capabilities and offerings.

In just a few years, the pharmacy has grown from providing just a few thousand medications annually to more than 80,000 prescriptions during its most recent fiscal year, according to CEO Luis Gonzalez.

The pharmacy hopes to provide 120,000 prescriptions to clients in its current fiscal year with a future goal of distributing 500,000 prescriptions by 2026.