Your Rite Aid pharmacy in Michigan is closing. Here’s what you should do next

• Rite Aid’s remaining stores are closing by the end of September, with most customer prescriptions transferred to Walgreens
• The closures are leaving patients in some communities miles from the nearest store
• Experts suggest early action and contacting your insurance provider for help

The mass closure of Rite Aid stores in Michigan has some patients searching for options for getting their prescriptions — with just over a month left before the chain makes a full exit from the state.

All Michigan Rite Aid stores are slated to close by the end of September. 

The loss means some residents in rural areas will be miles from the nearest drug store. Many are at serious risk of getting cut off from their medication, according to experts.

Stacey Pearl, Sparrow Pharmacy’s administrative director, is concerned about inaccessibility across the state, particularly in northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. Some of Sparrow’s hospitals will soon have the only pharmacies in a 20-mile radius.

Other pharmacies beyond Rite Aid are disappearing, too — Walgreens has announced plans to shutter a “significant” number of its stores, and an August Bridge review revealed nearly 50 CVS stores in Michigan have closed since 2020.

Here’s what patients who are losing their local Rite Aid pharmacies should do, according to Pearl and other experts.

How do I find a new pharmacy?

The first call you should make when transferring prescriptions is to your insurance provider, said Michigan Pharmacists Association spokesperson Eric Roath. Most will help patients find the nearest pharmacies with the best prices and availability. 

Related:

• Rite Aid confirms exit from Michigan market with latest store closings
• Rite Aid sends mixed messages as Michigan braces for more closures

In addition to “big box” retailers like Walgreens and CVS, health centers and hospitals like Sparrow may have their outpatient pharmacies open to the public, he said.

Your health care provider may be able to help too, said AARP Michigan spokesperson Careena Eggleston. Online resources like WellRx and Healthgrades allow users to compare their options.

“It's incredibly important that individuals who are affected by these closures engage with their pharmacy immediately,” she said.

How do I transfer my prescription?

Rite Aid has automatically transferred most prescriptions to nearby Walgreens locations, Eggleston said. Customers were sent an email and a physical letter with notice of the change, including directions to their new location.

But your nearest pharmacy may not be Walgreens, Eggleston said. To manually transfer prescriptions to another pharmacy, contact your new pharmacy and request a transfer of the medications you currently have. Allow 1-3 days for the transfer to take effect.

The pharmacy may need the following information:

• Your full name and address
• The address of your current Rite Aid
• The dosage and seven-digit Rx number of each medication, found at the top-left corner of the label

Schedule III, IV and V medications are controlled substances and restricted to one transfer. If you are out of transfers, your doctor will need to renew your prescription.

Will my costs change?

There is no guarantee your new pharmacy will be able to provide your prescription at the same cost, Eggleston said. Contact local pharmacies and your physician to compare medication cost and availability.

“The more involved (customers) are and proactive they are in transferring their own medications, the better off they'll be,” she said.

What are my alternatives if I can't drive to the next nearest pharmacy?

You may be able to avoid a long drive through direct delivery and online mail orders, Pearl said. Many Walgreens and CVS pharmacies offer up to same-day delivery to customers with eligible insurance plans for a fee.

But there are downsides: Mailed prescriptions can’t be ordered in advance and couriers can’t reach every place in the state, she said. Michigan’s unpredictable weather can cause damage, too.

“I’ve heard situations where people's capsules were melted together, or it was freezing cold outside and medication was just left on their doorstep,” she said.

If you can’t make the drive every time your medication runs out, Pearl said some insurance providers allow stores to fill a 90-day supply. 

County transportation services may help you get there too, she said.