Rite Aid Brings Insurance Agents To Stores In Preparation For Obamacare

By Sam Lewis

Drugstore chain wants to address customers’ questions about healthcare laws

According to Drugstore News, Rite Aid will be bringing insurance agents to nearly 2,000 of its 4,600+ stores beginning October 1. This date marks the start of state-by-state enrollment health insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

The agents will be brought in and specially trained to explain the upcoming law, as well as advise customers about healthcare plan options for themselves and their families. One-on-one sessions will be available for advisement about Medicaid eligibility, and customers will be able to enroll in a healthcare program of their choosing in-store. “With the implementation of the Health Insurance Marketplace, our customers will now have many new choices to make in the coming enrollment period. We know they will look to Rite Aid for information and guidance, and that's why we're providing free resources in store and online to help them better understand the new requirements and options available to them under the law,” says Rite Aid chairman and CEO, John Standley.

However, agents will not be available in prohibited states — Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Rite Aid did not elaborate further why Agents will not be available at all of the retailer’s locations, but did say these agents will be at select locations in-store for 12 hours per week. Just exactly how appointments and walk-ins will work for agents has not been made clear yet either. With many states’ insurance marketplaces not fully operational yet, and not expected to be by October 1, signing up on the spot may become a problem.

Very similar to in-store flu shot initiatives, Rite Aid’s addition of free, in-store insurance consultations is primarily aimed to drive traffic and boost profits. However, Rite Aid may hold an advantage, at least with customers focused on healthcare and/or preventative medicine. By using two different initiatives to lure customers, Rite Aid has essentially double its chances, over competing drugstore and pharmacy chains, of gaining additional and impulse sales.