New Yorkers racing to transfer their prescriptions from bankrupt Rite Aid drugstores to other pharmacies are getting a mix of different responses depending on the type of drugstores.
Some patients transferring scripts to CVS Health are discovering a “Welcome, Rite Aid and all new customers” message on the pharmacy chain’s website, which includes a phone hotline and online portal as part of the prescription transfer process. The personalized greeting came after CVS acquired prescription files of 625 Rite Aid pharmacies across 15 states.
At the same time, other patients are also being greeted in-person by independent pharmacy owners and workers who, in some cases, are making dozens of phone calls a day to establish connections with the flood of new customers’ doctors and prescribers.
How to transfer your Rite Aid prescriptions in NY
Independent drugstore owners told the USA TODAY Network that patients have a range of options for transferring Rite Aid scripts.
In some cases, the drugstore was able to secure the patients’ records from Rite Aid and seamlessly continue to fill full prescriptions. Others without those Rite Aid records resulted in the drugstore providing a smaller, temporary script fulfillment as the pharmacy obtained additional information from the prescriber.
For patients looking to transfer scripts, pharmacists recommended bringing as many relevant records as possible to the drugstore, while also communicating with the prescriber about the change to a new pharmacy.
At CVS, those looking to transfer prescriptions can call 1-833-287-3279 (TTY: 711) or transfer online or work with staff in the stores.
More: What happens when pharmacies close in NY? Here’s what to expect after Rite Aid bankruptcy
Similar transfer systems are available at other major pharmacy chains, in part, because Rite Aid’s bankruptcy sale agreements included transitioning pharmacy assets from more than 1,000 Rite Aid locations across the U.S. to CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, Albertsons, Kroger, Giant Eagle and other operators, USA TODAY reported.
What are NY’s rules about prescription transfers?
Meanwhile, New York’s Education Department, which oversees pharmacist licensing, has a webpage listing answers to frequent questions related to prescriptions, including the types of information that must be collected and rules intended to protect patients.
Among the crucial tips: “Patients have the right to choose the pharmacy where they wish to have their prescription(s) filled.”
Practitioners who exert undue influence on a patient (known as steering) to have a prescription filled at any one pharmacy over another whether electronically transmitted or via a written or oral prescription are subject to charges of unprofessional conduct, the agency noted.
That information, as well as tips about electronic transmittals of prescriptions, is available at the op.nysed.gov website.
Another helpful tool is the federal vaccine.gov website, which has a searchable online portal that allows patients to find a pharmacy near them based on ZIP code.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Rite Aid prescriptions: How to transfer yours to another NY pharmacy
Reporting by David Robinson, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
