48.9%
Tract-level access gaps
485 of 992 analyzed tracts meet the stored distance-based classification. Nine additional map geometries are explicitly marked not analyzed, rather than adequate access.
Oregon pharmacy-access research · 2026
Pharmacy Access Gaps in Oregon
Census-tract analysis of pharmacy deserts, pharmacy locations, and population-density overlap.
Explore where geographic access is limited, where barriers overlap, and where further investigation could inform action.
485 / 992
Tracts classified as deserts
48.9% of analyzed tracts
2.06M
Residents in desert tracts
49.3% of the analyzed population
663
Board pharmacy records
September 4, 2026 extract
264
Portland three-county core
39.8% · Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas
Explore the evidence
Oregon pharmacy access map
Choose a view, zoom to a community, or select a tract. Pharmacy markers summarize records at existing coordinates, not verified storefront locations.
Loading September baseline…
661 regular · 1 kiosk · 1 remote site · 19 locker records*
Map key
Desert tract
Not classified as desert
Not analyzed / no data
Regular pharmacies
L · Prescription lockers
K · Prescription kiosks
R · Remote dispensing
Shared coordinates are grouped.
Letter markers offset for visibility.
Separate access types: The 663-record Board baseline includes 661 regular pharmacies, one prescription kiosk (PPK), and one remote-dispensing site (RDSP). The 19 locker-list records are a separate layer, not 19 additional full-service pharmacies. Switching layers does not recalculate desert status.
Location-quality caution: The Board baseline shares 167 distinct coordinate pairs. Existing locker coordinates are also approximate; one conflicting Hillsboro city/ZIP record is withheld. Verify public eligibility and operating hours directly. OR 217 remains highlighted in blue in Portland.
Browse lockers, kiosks, and remote-dispensing records
September 4, 2026 Board files. Parent-pharmacy licenses can appear more than once; listing does not confirm unrestricted public access. Prescription kiosks here dispense prescriptions, not medication-disposal kiosks.
Loading access-point records…
What this baseline supports
Population burden, with context
The stored September results replace the older mixed-source 801-pharmacy display. They remain research estimates, not validated patient-level access measurements.
49.3%
Residents in classified tracts
The baseline estimates 2,059,642 residents in desert tracts. This does not mean every resident personally exceeds the distance threshold; the population source year still needs verification.
39.8%
Pharmacy records in the core metro
264 of 663 Board records are in Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas counties. This is the three-county core, not the five-county Oregon MSA.
County comparisons
Where classified tracts concentrate
All 36 counties are included. Counts use analyzed tracts only; small county denominators can produce large percentages. Select a county name to focus the map.
| County | Desert tracts | % of tracts | Residents in desert tracts | Share |
|---|
Source transparency
What is mapped. What comes next.
A newer recommended source is not automatically an input to the current map. Keep observation periods, release dates, and analysis versions separate.
September analysis baseline
- Pharmacy records and access types
- September 4, 2026 Oregon Board of Pharmacy extract: 661 RP records, one PPK kiosk, and one RDSP remote-dispensing site (663 total). The separate PPL file contains 19 locker records, including repeat physical addresses; 18 are mapped and one location conflict is withheld. Existing coordinates and public-access eligibility require review. Board records process ↗
- Tract geography
- Existing 2020 TIGER-based display geometry: 1,001 shapes, with 992 matched analysis rows and nine unclassified shapes.
- Population
- Stored ACS-derived values total 4,176,346 across analyzed tracts. The original Census endpoint/year has not been independently recovered. Do not label these values verified ACS2022 or 2020 decennial counts.
- Vulnerability
- CDC/ATSDR SVI 2022 fields. The state-versus-national ranking reference requires confirmation before interpreting the stored 0.75 cutoff as an Oregon or national quartile. CDC methodology ↗
Versioned data upgrade
- ACS 2020–2024 + TIGER2024
- Update tract estimates and margins of error, then join matching geography. Released January 29, 2026; a period estimate, not measured 2026 population. Census release ↗
- SVI 2022 + RUCA 2020
- Use the corrected SVI file with an explicit ranking basis, and assess the RUCA tract codes released July 2025. Do not silently change rurality thresholds. CDC methodology ↗ · USDA methods ↗
- Targeted routing
- Use inhabited 2020 Census blocks and a dated road network to assess within-tract variation, including cross-border alternatives. This site does not calculate current network travel times. Census block data ↗
Classification and interpretation
The displayed is_desert_2026 field is preserved from the master dataset. Its stored results match a nearest-pharmacy distance threshold of greater than 1 mile where is_urban = 1 and greater than 10 miles otherwise. The latter currently includes both suburban and rural categories. This is not the USC suburban 2-mile rule.
Distances shown are stored centroid-based straight-line estimates, not driving routes. Population-weighting of the origins is not independently established here. Legacy drive-time estimates and PVI scores from the older pharmacy layer are withheld to avoid mixing analysis versions.
The density view shades only desert tracts with a continuous, log-scaled population-density overlay. Darker blue indicates greater density, not a validated priority score. The vulnerability view highlights the stored dual-burden flag; SVI ranking provenance and current location quality limit interpretation.
Geographic proximity does not establish hours, medication stock, public dispensing eligibility, delivery access, transportation options, or payer-network participation. A pharmacy-count difference between incompatible source lists is not evidence of confirmed closures.
Research reference
USC Pharmacy Access Initiative
The November 2022 USC article describes a context-sensitive pharmacy-shortage framework. It is a methodological reference, not the algorithm implemented in this Oregon baseline. Read the USC article ↗
Verify the underlying income, vehicle-ownership, urbanicity, and distance methods before replication. Its historical national prevalence is not directly comparable to Oregon’s tract estimate.
Rural>10 miles
Suburban>2 miles
Urban>1 mile
Low income + low vehicle ownership>0.5 mile
Reported in the USC article; not newly applied to this map.
From research to decisions
Target the next question, not just the next dot.
These are candidate investigation pathways, not demonstrated intervention effects or a plan-specific network-adequacy determination.
Validate geographic access
Audit addresses and shared coordinates, confirm public-facing dispensing, and test road-network travel from inhabited areas before selecting intervention sites.
Understand compounded barriers
Review vehicle availability, disability, language, and financial barriers alongside SVI. Evaluate transportation or delivery options without double-counting the same vulnerability domains.
Identify current payer partners
Use current CCO service areas and OHP enrollment context; overlapping and partial-county coverage require care. Actual network analysis needs participating-pharmacy directories and appropriately governed member data. OHA CCOs ↗ · OHP enrollment ↗
Connect with broader community need
Use the 2026 OHSU Areas of Unmet Health Care Need report and variables to contextualize local primary, dental, and mental-health access. This complements, rather than replaces, pharmacy-access analysis. OHSU resources ↗
About the project
RxAccess Oregon
A geospatial pharmacy-access research and decision-support project by Brandon San, MBA, MSHI, PharmD Candidate 2027, connecting health informatics, pharmacy practice, and equitable access.
Developed in the context of the University of Illinois Chicago Master of Health Informatics capstone and Pacific University pharmacy research. This public-data prototype is distinct from future governed payer analyses.