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Pharmacist Rick Carter takes a few minutes to chat with a potential customer Tuesday afternoon in Maryville. After 23 years in the Maryville pharmacy business, Mr. Carter signed a deal to sell his pharmacy to Hy-Vee.

Rick Carter just made one of the hardest decisions of his life.

After 23 years in the Maryville pharmacy business, Mr. Carter signed a deal last week to sell Carter’s Pharmacy to Hy-Vee. Carter’s — the last independent pharmacy in Maryville — will close its doors and shift all of its customers to Hy-Vee effective July 28.

“It’s a decision that was made with the head and not necessarily the heart,” Mr. Carter said.

One of the more difficult side effects of the choice comes up whenever one of Carter’s loyal customers asks a simple question: Why?

Mr. Carter patiently explains. With Walgreens rumored to be opening a store in Maryville, he thought his best financial option was to sell before his business dwindled away to a larger competitor. “It’s kind of like the John Elway question,” Mr. Carter said. “Do you quit while you’re on top? I can go out on my own terms this way.”

Walgreens officials have yet to officially announce a store in Maryville, though the company did confirm that it hopes to do so in the near future. “We’ve been looking in the area for a store location, but we don’t have definite plans we can confirm at this time,” Walgreens spokesperson Carol Hively said.

In the world of large commercial pharmacy chains, Mr. Carter saw Hy-Vee as a relative “little guy” that shares his customer-based values. He will take a part-time position with Hy-Vee and remains confident that his customers will continue to receive quality care.

Competition was not the only factor in Mr. Carter’s decision to close. Decreased reimbursement rates from Medicare Part D have put many pharmacies in a financial crunch, especially those in rural or poor urban areas.

The program, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2006, subsidizes the costs of prescription drugs. Many pharmacists argue that the government payments are inadequate, while insurance companies do not foot enough of the bill.

“It’s an embarrassment,” Mr. Carter said. “It’s not good for seniors and it’s not good for the pharmacies. It’s good for the insurance companies. We can’t survive on the reimbursement rate.”

Mr. Carter isn’t alone in his criticism of Medicare. A study from the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the Food Marketing Institute claimed on May 30 that 11,105 pharmacies in the United States were at risk of closing due to reductions in the reimbursement rate. In a separate report, the National Community Pharmacists Association and drug maker Pfizer found that 1,100 community pharmacies closed in 2006, marking the industry’s first decline in five years.

Mr. Carter said everything is not doom and gloom. His Weston, Mo., location remains strong, and last week he signed a contract to open a pharmacy in the Platte City Price Chopper. But Mr. Carter’s loyal customers don’t need to worry about him leaving when Carter’s Pharmacy closes.

“I’ve spent basically my whole career in Maryville, and I don’t want people to think that I’m skipping town,” Mr. Carter said. “I’m a Maryville guy.”

Business reporter Clinton Thomas can be reached at clintonthomas@npgco.com.