Will AI Replace Pharmacy Technicians? Exploring The Future Of Pharmacy Care

If you’re a pharmacy technician or considering entering the field, you’ve likely heard concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) replacing jobs. It’s a reasonable worry in an era of rapid technological change. However, the reality is far more nuanced and considerably more optimistic than the headlines suggest. The future of pharmacy isn’t about replacement—it’s about the value AI lends to the profession and the positive impact it could bring to patients.

This transformation will allow technology, for example, to compare patient prescriptions written by different physicians to identify potential drug interactions. It gives pharmacy staff instant access to the latest medication information and clinical guidelines and frees pharmacy staff to spend more time counseling patients. These changes benefit pharmacy professionals, employers, and most importantly, patients who require safer, more attentive care as mandated by the 5 Patient Rights.

Understanding the Distinction: Artificial Intelligence vs. Automation

Before diving into the future of pharmacy jobs, it’s essential to distinguish between AI and automation, as these terms are often used interchangeably but represent different technologies with different implications.

Automation refers to technology that performs repetitive, rule-based tasks without human intervention. In pharmacy settings, this includes software, inventory management and purchasing, prescription filling and packaging robotics, and prescription verification systems. These technologies have been transforming pharmacy workflows for years, handling high-volume, routine tasks with speed and precision.

Artificial Intelligence goes beyond following programmed rules. AI systems can learn from data, recognize patterns, make predictions, and even improve their performance over time. In pharmacy, AI applications might include clinical decision support systems that flag potential drug interactions, predictive analytics for inventory management, natural language processing that extracts information from medical records, and tailored drug therapies based on a patient’s genetic profile, lifestyle and medical history. In addition, AI can work toward adverse event detection by swiftly scanning vast datasets to look for patterns.

While automation handles the “doing,” AI performs analyses that aid with decision making aspects of pharmacy work. Both are reshaping the profession, but neither is simply replacing human workers.

Current Responsibilities of Pharmacy Technicians

Pharmacy technicians are the backbone of pharmacy practice, playing a crucial role in supporting pharmacists and ensuring the safe and efficient delivery of patient care. Their responsibilities span a wide range of tasks, from filling prescriptions and managing inventory to maintaining accurate patient records and handling insurance claims. In both retail pharmacy and hospital pharmacy settings, technicians are often the first point of contact for patients, providing guidance on over-the-counter medications and answering basic health-related questions.

With the rise of artificial intelligence in pharmacy, the scope of the pharmacy technician’s role is rapidly expanding. AI systems are now capable of automating many routine tasks, such as inventory management, processing prior authorizations, and managing insurance claims. This shift allows pharmacy technicians to dedicate more time to direct patient care and clinical services, such as medication therapy management and patient education.

Technicians serve as critical intermediaries between automation systems and pharmacists, handling setup, calibration, and maintenance. Rather than eliminating pharmacy jobs, robotics has redistributed labor—technicians now manage increasingly complex systems, requiring enhanced technical training and situational awareness in automated environments. Overall, by leveraging AI tools, technicians ultimately enhance patient safety and improve patient outcomes.

What the Numbers Really Tell Us

Research indicates an interesting contrast in automation risk between pharmacy roles. Pharmacists are positioned among healthcare occupations at lower risk of displacement by AI and automation. While pharmacy technicians face a moderate risk of replacement, automation is expected to change the role and functions of pharmacy technicians. The profession is relatively secure however, as the U.S. faces a persistent shortage of qualified pharmacy technicians, with employment growth projected at only 4% from 2019 to 2029. This figure is well below the demand created by an aging population and expanding healthcare needs.

Automation probability doesn’t equal job elimination; it indicates which tasks within a role can be automated. Consider the traditional workflow: A pharmacy technician might spend hours counting pills, managing inventory spreadsheets, and processing routine refills. Automated dispensing systems now handle much of this work with greater speed and accuracy. Rather than eliminating the technician’s job, this shift frees them to take on responsibilities that require human judgment, empathy, and problem-solving skills.

Modern pharmacy technicians increasingly serve as technology managers, overseeing AI-integrated workflows, troubleshooting automated systems, and ensuring quality control. They’re becoming specialists in medication therapy management support, patient education, and coordination of care—roles that require uniquely human capabilities that AI cannot replicate.

The Customer Experience: Where AI and Automation Deliver Real Value in Patient Care

For pharmacy customers, the integration of AI and automation creates tangible improvements in service quality, safety, and convenience.

Reduced Wait Times: Automated dispensing systems can fill prescriptions in minutes rather than hours, dramatically reducing customer wait times. During peak periods or staff shortages, automation ensures consistent service levels that would be impossible to maintain manually.

Enhanced Accuracy: Automation eliminates common human errors filling prescriptions. Barcode scanning, automated pill counting, and verification systems catch potential mistakes before medications reach patients. AI-powered clinical decision support flags dangerous drug interactions or dosing errors, adding an additional safety layer.

Faster Access to New Medications: AI-powered tools help prepare documents for regulatory approval and analyze data from clinical trials, which not only saves time but also reduces the risk of delays. This means new medications and treatments may reach patients more quickly if critical months or years can be shaved off clinical study processes.

More Face Time with Pharmacy Staff: When technicians aren’t consumed by manual tasks, they can spend more time with customers. This means better explanations of medication instructions, more thorough answers to questions, and personalized attention that improves medication adherence and health outcomes.

Improved Access to Expertise: AI tools provide pharmacy staff with instant access to the latest medication information, clinical guidelines, and patient-specific data. This means customers receive more informed, up-to-date guidance, even for complex medication regimens.

Better Inventory Management: Predictive analytics help pharmacies maintain optimal stock levels, reducing instances where customers arrive to find their medications unavailable. AI-driven inventory systems can anticipate demand patterns and ensure medications are ready when patients need them.

Preparing for the Future: Opportunities and Action Steps

Health system pharmacies are already demonstrating the path forward. Increased automation adoption and AI integration are enabling pharmacists and technicians to “operate at the top of their license,” which gives them the opportunity to focus on clinical responsibilities and patient care rather than administrative burdens.

The pharmacy employers seeing the greatest success with automation report a return on investment stemming primarily through improved efficiency and reduced administrative overhead. These savings do not come from eliminating staff but from maximizing the value each team member provides.

For pharmacy technicians, this evolving landscape creates genuine career growth opportunities. Technicians who develop expertise in managing automated systems, interpreting AI-generated insights, and focusing on patient-facing responsibilities will find themselves increasingly valuable. The shortage of qualified technicians combined with expanding roles suggests strong job security for those who embrace technological change.

The pharmacy education landscape is beginning to help technicians embrace this change and engage in this AI-integrated future. Professional continuing education courses, such as the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy’s “AI: A New Way to Help Pharmacy Thrive!,” now offer pharmacy technicians training to recognize AI technologies, understand their implications in healthcare, and grasp AI’s impact on the pharmacy workforce.

Organizations like the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) have developed AI certification programs specifically for pharmacy technicians, covering machine learning fundamentals, clinical decision support systems, and AI applications in hospital operations.

As these educational offerings expand, aspiring pharmacy technicians who seek programs emphasizing technology and automation—or pursue continuing education in AI applications—have a greater chance to gain a competitive advantage in this evolving field.

The AI in Pharmacy Bottom Line

Will AI replace pharmacy technicians? The evidence says no. Will AI and automation transform what pharmacy technicians do? Absolutely—and that transformation benefits everyone involved. Customers receive faster, safer, and more personalized service. Pharmacy staff escape tedious manual tasks and engage in more meaningful work. And healthcare organizations address critical workforce shortages while improving operational efficiency.

The future of pharmacy is not about humans versus machines. It is about humans working alongside intelligent technologies to deliver better care. For pharmacy technicians willing to grow with the profession, that future looks remarkably bright.

Pharmacy Automation Solutions from JFCRx

Embracing automation does not mean replacing your team—it means empowering them. JFCRx delivers comprehensive pharmacy automation solutions designed to address labor shortages while improving efficiency and enhancing patient care. From vial filling to adherence packaging, JFCRx provides the tools pharmacies need to thrive in today’s challenging environment.

• JFCRx’s automation portfolio includes TruScript™ automated vial filling, which handles 25-30% of daily prescription volume and features 54 secured canisters in under 5 square feet with intelligent prescription routing.
• TruCard™ multi-dose blister card packaging reduces pharmacist check time by up to 70% through integrated image verification.
• TruPak™ adherence pouch packaging cuts machine downtime and rework by up to 80%, helping patients stay on their medication regimens.
• TruPak™ Spark is a growth-ready, scalable path to launching or expanding an adherence pouch packaging program.
• TruCheck™ adherence pouch packaging verification provides efficient and accurate pouch verification to monitor and document production quality, with high-speed automated verification that detects incorrect pill counts, colors, shapes, and sizes, as well as foreign objects.
• The TruSort™ tablet sorter relieves pharmacy staff of the burden of manual pill sortation and delivers a simple and hands-free workflow to automate pill sortation with the assurance of image verification.

Many of our solutions integrate through EnLite™, a cloud-based ecosystem that manages multiple systems as a single solution with enhanced analytics and reporting.

By partnering with JFCRx, you are not just purchasing equipment. You’re working with pharmacy industry veterans who understand your operational challenges and help create actionable workflow plans tailored to your specific goals.

Contact JFCRx to schedule a demo and discover how automation can help your pharmacy address labor shortages, improve efficiency, and enhance patient care.