YORKSHIRE — Several more area Rite Aid pharmacies are formally set to close, company officials reported, as others are still in limbo.
Rite Aid officials in a court bankruptcy filing reported that the Yorkshire location, as well as that in Port Allegany, Pa., are the latest added to the more than 150 stores set to close. The closing date for the Yorkshire location is set for June 4, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the New York State Department of Labor initially filed early this month and updated last week.
The company currently operates in four Cattaraugus County communities — Olean, Gowanda, Salamanca and Yorkshire. Nearby locations in Northern Pennsylvania include Bradford, Coudersport, Kane and Port Allegany.
Rite Aid is in the midst of its second bankruptcy filing in less than two years. The first filing, Oct. 15, 2023, and the second filing was made on May 5, according to court records. Both filings were under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the federal law that allows firms to attempt reorganization without liquidating all assets and closing down all operations. Company officials indicated an effort to sell all or some locations is underway.
In mid-May, announcements indicated the Salamanca, Coudersport and Kane locations would be closed. Only the Bradford, Gowanda and Olean locations have not been publicly announced for closure. All of the New York locations are included in the state WARN, with the same potential closing date set as the Yorkshire site. However, under the category of the type of layoff — permanent or temporary — the Olean, Salamanca and Gowanda sites list “N/A.” The Yorkshire listing indicates a permanent layoff.
The stores employ between 10 and 13 workers each, according to the WARN.
The last Allegany County location in Wellsville previously closed and was replaced with a Dollar Tree store.
Earlier this month, the Associated Press reported that the company plans to sell customer prescription files, inventory and other assets as it closes distribution centers and closes store locations. On May 21, the bankruptcy court in New Jersey approved the sale of more than 1,000 stores’ worth of prescription assets to firms including CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens and other large pharmacy operations. Dozens of Rite Aid stores will also be sold to CVS in Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
As of the beginning of the month, the company operated more than 1,200 stores in 15 states, with almost 350 in New York, Pennsylvania and California alone.
Pharmacy chains have noted major slowdowns in traffic and subsequent store closings in recent years. CVS, which closed around 900 stores between 2022 and 2024, announced in its annual report in February that 271 more stores would be closed this year — reports of specific CVS store closings have not included the area stores in Olean, Bradford and Johnsonburg, Pa. Walgreens has announced it will close around 1,200 stores in the next three years, with 500 set for this year.
