Shopko closes Port pharmacy, sells prescriptions to Walgreens

Port Washington’s only pharmacy, the apothecary at Shopko Express, closed at 4 p.m. Tuesday and its prescription files were transferred to Walgreens in Saukville.

The pharmacy records were purchased at auction by Walgreens last week, Shopko spokesman Michelle Hansen said.

“Walgreens bought a cluster of them (Shopko pharmacies),” Hansen said, adding she did not know the number of prescriptions involved or the price paid for the Port store.

Not all the pharmacies purchased by Walgreens are closing on the same date, she said.

“They are turning around fairly quickly,” Hansen said.

Port Washington Mayor Marty Becker, who is a pharmacist at Shopko Express, said the staff was told of the closing late Monday.

While the prescriptions at Shopko Express’ pharmacy were transferred to Walgreens, customers are not obligated to fill them at the Saukville store, Hansen said.

“If customers would like them transferred to an alternate pharmacy, they can,” she said.

Port Washington won’t be without a pharmacy for long. Aurora Health Care is opening a pharmacy at its east Port Washington clinic on Monday, Feb. 4.

The news of the pharmacy’s closing came at the close of two weeks of rapid changes for the shop.

Two weeks ago, Shopko announced that its Grafton store would be closing but that the Shopko Express in Port would remain open.

Days later, the corporation said the Port pharmacy would close but the Shopko Express store would remain open.

“As part of the Shopko Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring, we are completely getting out of the pharmacy business,” Hansen said at the time.

Becker decried the loss of the pharmacy last week, noting that communities are defined, in part, by the fact they have a pharmacy, grocery, hardware store, church and schools.

Shopko Express’ pharmacy had been in Port Washington for 15 years, since it bought the former Port Apothecary.

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