Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy Monday for the second time, reported the Washington Post this week. This filing comes less than a year after the drug store chain emerged from Chapter 11 as a private company in September.
“Rite Aid said in a news release that it’s looking for a buyer and is in ‘active discussions’ with multiple prospects. The Chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey gives Rite Aid access to $1.94 billion in new financing to fund the sale process, during which it plans to keep stores open,” wrote the Post.
Rite Aid first filed for bankruptcy in October 2023 and received $3.45 billion in new financing to support its reorganization. The company eliminated almost $2 billion in debt and closed hundreds of stores after it emerged from Chapter 11 in the fall.
Elsewhere in the drug store space, CVS Health delivered first-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations. CVS Health reported net income of $1.78 billion for the first quarter. However, it said its Aetna unit plans to withdraw next year from the Affordable Care Act exchange business, where the insurer is losing money, reported the Wall Street Journal earlier this month.
“The healthcare giant also said it has struck a deal with the Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk for its pharmacy-benefit manager, CVS Caremark, to favor the company’s weight-loss medication Wegovy among the drugs it covers for clients, a change that will take effect July 1. CVS will also sell Wegovy at a discounted cash price through its pharmacies,” wrote the Journal.
In March, NACS Daily reported that CVS Health was preparing to open a dozen stores offering full-service pharmacies but very limited retail. And in an attempt to combat theft, CVS is trialing a new app feature that will allow customers to open the cabinets themselves, the company said in January.
Walgreens, meanwhile, said in October 2024 it planned to close about 1,200 of its more than 8,000 stores in the United States over the next three years in an effort to cut costs and change focus. NACS Daily reported earlier this year that Walgreens closed 70 stores in its fiscal first quarter and plans to shutter around 500 this year.