Final day until popular pharmacy and CVS rival set to close - see if your area is affected

RITE Aid has announced plans to close one of its pharmacy locations later this week.

Thursday will be the last day of business for the chain's store at 291 West Ferry Street in Buffalo, New York.

Now, the closest pharmacy will be more than a mile away for many residents of the city's Grant Ferry neighborhood, WKBW reported.

"I've been dealing with this Rite Aid for a long time," one customer told the outlet.

"It's crazy because there won't be nothing here no more."

He can walk to the existing location, but will have to get on a bus or have his medications delivered once the store shuts down.

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Another shopper said the closure is evidence of "our community going down."

Now, their prescriptions will be transferred to other nearby pharmacies.

CORPORATE RESPONSE

"We regularly review each of our locations to ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers, communities and overall business," Rite Aid said in a statement provided to The U.S. Sun.

"A decision to close a store is one we take very seriously."

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These choices are based on factors like business strategy, store performance, and lease and rent considerations.

"We review every neighborhood to ensure our customers will have access to health services, be it at Rite Aid or a nearby pharmacy, and we work to seamlessly transfer their prescriptions so there is no disruption of services," the company said.

"We also strive to transfer associates to other Rite Aid locations where possible."

ADDITIONAL CLOSURES

The news comes after the chain closed two other stores in Western New York earlier this month, one in Niagara Falls and one at 1625 Broadway in Buffalo.

But Rite Aid closures are not limited to these two cities.

The chain announced plans to close 145 stores nationwide last year.

It will shutter another store in Rochester, New York, on Wednesday.

Rite Aid also closed a location in La Grande, Oregon - about 260 miles east of Portland - last month.

That left the town of about 13,000 with just two pharmacy options.

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