CVS to take over pharmacies in Schnucks grocery stores, including those in metro-east
CVS is taking over pharmacies at Schnucks Markets, according to a CVS news release tweeted by Schnucks on Tuesday.
“Through this agreement, CVS Pharmacy and its subsidiaries will acquire and operate 99 of the grocer’s pharmacies and will brand them as CVS Pharmacy,” it states. “Additionally, CVS Pharmacy and its subsidiaries will acquire the prescription files from 11 Schnucks pharmacies and transfer them to nearby CVS Pharmacy locations.”
In other words, 11 Schnucks pharmacies will close, but none are in the metro-east.
The news release pointed out that CVS became the first and only major retail pharmacy to remove tobacco products from its shelves and that Schnucks stores became tobacco-free on Jan. 1.
“As Schnucks continues to expand our emphasis on health and wellness, this collaboration with CVS is an opportunity for us to align with a company that has a similar focus,” Schnucks CEO Todd Schnuck stated.
Schnucks pharmacy closings will include the in-store location at the Schnucks in Kirkwood, Missouri, and three Schnucks specialty pharmacies in Maryland Heights, Brentwood and the Lindenwood Park neighborhood of St. Louis, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
The switch to CVS will affect 14 in-store Schnucks pharmacies in the metro-east. That includes two in Belleville and one in Swansea, Fairview Heights, O’Fallon, Cahokia, Collinsville, Waterloo, Granite City, Edwardsville, Wood River, Bethalto, Alton and Godfrey.
The Schnucks in Columbia and a second Schnucks in Alton don’t have pharmacies.
Schnucks on Tuesday would not disclose the number of pharmacy customers it serves or how many prescriptions it fills, according to the Post-Dispatch. The grocer advised customers to check with their insurance providers to see if CVS Pharmacy is in-network and to verify co-pays.
CVS, which is headquartered in Rhode Island, already has more than 40 pharmacies in the St. Louis metropolitan area, including 11 in the metro-east. St. Louis-based Schnucks operates more than 120 grocery stores and pharmacies in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa.
This story was originally published March 10, 2020 at 4:47 PM.