A recent CVS Health survey of 2,200 consumers and more than 1,060 pharmacists and pharmacy techs reveals how highly customers value in-person pharmacy care: 80% of patients prefer it, and 48% would switch pharmacies if they were limited to digital-only options.
To meet this need for face-to-face care, CVS Health plans to open nearly 100 community pharmacies this year, including 60+ acquired from now-bankrupt Rite Aid in the Pacific Northwest. CVS also is moving ahead with more small-format stores (less than 5,000 square feet) in addition to the dozen the retailer announced in March 2025.
“Community pharmacy teams do so much more than fill prescriptions and, as patients increasingly rely on them for local access to care, we are reimagining the role they play to have an even greater impact on public health,” said Lucille Accetta, SVP and Chief Pharmacy Officer at CVS Health in a statement.
CVS had been on a path to brick-and-mortar contraction earlier this year: in June 2025 the retailer announced plans to close 271 stores as part of a multi-year strategy to deliver $2 billion in savings. Now, with the completion of its acquisition of select Rite Aid assets nationwide, CVS is operating 63 former Rite Aid and Bartell Drugs stores in Idaho, Oregon and Washington. CVS Pharmacy also has acquired the prescription files of 626 former Rite Aid and Bartell Drugs pharmacies in 15 states, following the purchase of Rite Aid assets by CVS and other pharmacy retailers in May 2025.
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“We’re helping maintain and expand access to convenient and trusted pharmacy care across the U.S. and growing our retail footprint and presence in local communities,” said Len Shankman, EVP and President, Pharmacy and Consumer Wellness at CVS Health in a statement.
