Rite Aid has closed its final doors after 63 years in business

By Auzinea Bacon, CNN

(CNN) — Rite Aid, once one of America’s biggest pharmacy chains, shuttered its remaining 89 stores this week after filing for bankruptcy in May for the second time in less than two years.

“All Rite Aid stores have now closed. We thank our loyal customers for their many years of support,” the company said in a statement on its website.

The company’s website, which has since removed all of its services, remains available for former customers to request pharmaceutical records or locate another nearby pharmacy to fulfill prescriptions.

The full-service pharmacy first opened in 1962 and became well-known for its cult-favorite ice cream brand, Thrifty, which has since been sold due to the store’s bankruptcy. Rite Aid first filed for bankruptcy in October 2023, largely because of competition from bigger chains and its debt pile, which topped $4 billion due to expensive legal battles for allegedly filling unlawful opioid prescriptions.

Rite Aid emerged from that bankruptcy in September 2024, having slashed $2 billion in debt, securing $2.5 billion in funds to maintain operations and closing about 500 locations. In May, Rite Aid had about 1,250 remaining stores, cut by about half from its 2023 operations.

The drugstore announced in May that it sold most of its US stores’ pharmacy services to rivals CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, Albertsons and Kroger, which collectively claimed more than 1,000 locations.

It’s a saving grace for former Rite Aid customers, who may have otherwise lost access to their nearest pharmacy. When drugstores permanently close, as has been the trend in recent years, patients often have to travel farther to get their medications, posing a larger risk to older adults.

CVS announced in November 2021 that it would close 900 stores by 2024 after it had closed 244 stores between 2018 and 2020. Former Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth had told the Wall Street Journal last year that about 25% of its stores aren’t profitable, and the company announced in October 2024 that it would close 1,200 stores.

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CNN’s Jordan Valinsky and Nathaniel Meyersohn contributed to this report.