Different Rules for Selling Items at Big Box Stores Then Pharmacies

Pete Fisher
3 years ago
• Categories: Editor Choice, Local, Photo Gallery

Today’s Northumberland has learned although big box stores can only sell essential items, it’s a free-for-all at pharmacies.

After being informed last week that pharmacies were selling items, that big box stores such as Walmart were not allowed to see Today’s Northumberland visited a few pharmacies.

At Walmart magazine, greeting card and toy aisles along with other areas are blocked off, but at PharmaSave in Port Hope and Shoppers Drug Mart in Cobourg those aisles are open.

Reaching out to the Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ride District Health Unit, Manager of Corporate Services, Communications and IT, Chandra Tremblay stated, “there are restrictions specified for big box and discount stores that are not identified for pharmacies.”

“As a result large retailers have taped off non-essential aisles and sell these products via curbside or as pre-ordered items.”

Under the provincial COVID-19: enhanced public health and workplace safety measures it states pharmacies are open for in-person retail (25% capacity, where two metres physical distancing can be maintained), curbside pick-up and delivery and mentions nothing about toys, greeting cards, magazines, gift cards, or non-essential items.

But discount and big box stores which can only open for in-person shopping at a maximum capacity of 25% are only allowed to sell grocery items, pet care supplies, household cleaning supplies, pharmaceutical items, health care items, personal care items, household safety supplies and school supplies.