The pharmaceutical industry is currently suffering, with major chain Rite Aid set to close 27 more stores, including 12 in Michigan and 15 in Ohio, as part of its ongoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. This move follows the company’s earlier closures, which included 19 stores in Michigan last year. Rite Aid’s bankruptcy filing listed $8.6 billion in debts against $7.6 billion in assets.
The closures reflect a broader trend in the industry, with more than 7,000 U.S. pharmacies shutting down since 2019, as reported by University of Pittsburgh researcher Lucas Berenbrok. Notably, 54% of these closures were independent drugstores.
Other major chains are also scaling back, CVS closed around 600 locations at the end of 2023 and Walgreens set to shutter over 150 stores this year.
Source: apnews.com
Reporting for WGRT – Choze Powell
