Another Lexington pharmacy location is closing. Here’s where, when
One of Lexington’s remaining CVS locations is closing later this spring.
The CVS Pharmacy on Walden Drive, near Tates Creek Centre, will close at the end of April, store employees told the Herald-Leader. Following the closure of the CVS on Southland Drive earlier this month, there are only a handful of the chain’s stores still operating in the area.
There was no exterior signage announcing the closure of the Walden Drive store on Wednesday morning, though pharmacy technicians confirmed the location would close April 30. Multiple pharmacy customers also said they received notification that the location would close on that date.
A CVS spokesperson said in an email to the Herald-Leader all customer prescriptions will be transferred to the chain’s location on Harrodsburg Road and said employees are being offered comparable roles within the company.
“Maintaining access to pharmacy services in the communities we serve is an important factor we consider when making store closure decisions,” said CVS Corporate Communications Senior Manager Roslyn Guarino in the email. “Other factors include local market dynamics, population shifts, a community’s store density, and ensuring there are other geographic access points to meet the needs of the community.”
Four CVS locations remain in Lexington: on New Circle Road, Harrodsburg Road, Todds Road and Upper Street — which is located inside the Target near the University of Kentucky’s campus.
Pharmacy chains, CVS included, are closing across the country due to unsustainable business models, staffing challenges and rising operational costs.
Between 2010 and 2021, over 29% of pharmacies across the country closed, according to The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. Closures have exacerbated “pharmacy deserts,” or areas that are generally low-income and often rural where there are no pharmacies within 10 miles of residents.
Last year, CVS closed approximately 270 locations across the country as part of a multi-year restructuring plan. Those closures — concentrated in Florida, California, Illinois and New York — were based on shifts in population and on low foot traffic.
Those closures followed the shuttering of around 900 locations between 2022 and 2024. During the two-year period, company officials said offloading some of its locations would allow the chain to respond better to customer needs and was not influenced by industry pressures or changes.
Pharmacies closing across Kentucky
Pharmacies generate revenue on fees from insurers for filling prescriptions, along with reimbursements for the cost of drugs. Only a few managers control reimbursement rates, which are generally lower than the actual cost of getting medications, setting pharmacies up to dispense medication at a loss.
But pharmacies also make money by buying generic drugs and selling them at higher prices, providing vaccinations and having front-of-store sales like makeup, grocery items and over-the-counter medicine.
In 2024, Walgreens closed three of its Central Kentucky locations as part of that chain’s strategy to shut down 1,200 stores.
And this year in February, the longtime independent Lexington pharmacy, the Pharmacy Shop, closed after more than three decades of business. A reason for the closure was not given.
At the end of 2025, University Health Pharmacy, located in the first-floor lobby of the University Health Service Building on the University of Kentucky’s campus, permanently closed.
According to a recent Herald-Leader analysis, 67 pharmacies in Kentucky — including nine in Pulaski County — closed in 2023.
This story was originally published March 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM.
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