September 21, 2026 – Daily Jefferson County Union
The recent closing of the Drug Store Pharmacy on Main Street in Jefferson cuts deep into the fabric of our community. An independent drug store has been in this location since 1899, serving as a key part of Jefferson’s history. Even worse, we are now at high risk of losing a personalized world, with a pharmacist and staff who knew and took care of so many in the community. For example, the pharmacy had a dog bowl for its fourlegged visitors and pictures of various community members’ pets, most especially those of the feline persuasion.
The staff and pharmacist Josh Katz could not have been more professional and helpful, particularly with the administration of vaccines.
This is not an isolated problem either. The Hometown Pharmacy in Lake Mills closed almost exactly one year ago. The closing of another little jewel of our local businesses reinforces the need for new leadership in Madison.
The State Assembly failed all of us by not passing Cole’s Act (AB 173), named after 22-year-old Cole Schmidtknecht, who died from an asthma attack after his inhaler’s price spiked unexpectedly, and he could not afford to refill his prescription. This kind of tragedy has a tragic ripple effect, harming families and small businesses alike.
Who’s the real culprit in Cole’s tragic death and how does that relate to the closing of the Drug Store?
Well, mega-companies, called Pharmacy Benefit Managers, or PBMs, are the ones to blame for both. They are impersonal middlemen who jack up prices and remove drugs from coverage for a patient without even letting them know, as in Cole’s case.
Cole’s Act would have prevented PBMs from reducing payments to independent pharmacies, like the Drug Store, to such reduced rates that it drives them out of business. Also, it would have kept PBMs from penalizing pharmacists who discuss lower-cost alternatives with their patients.
We need common sense solutions, like Cole’s Act, which remove these faceless middlemen who line their already bulging pockets, at our expense.
The incumbent Representative Wiliam Penterman has done nothing in the healthcare space and did less than nothing to help the Drug Store. Now it is closed. Let’s not let PBMs control critical health care decisions that can cost our children their lives and ruin our main streets across Jefferson County.
Consider a change this November. A new voice for you in Madison. Vote for Terri Wenkman from Jefferson. She’s a nurse who has been fighting for healthcare access and patients’ needs her entire career.
Leigh Barker Cheesebro,
Helenville
