Rite Aid Supports the American Heart Association to Fight Heart Disease

Heart Guides with Health Tips Available Free in All Rite Aid Stores Nationwide and Online

Stores Collecting $1 Donations for Red Dress Pinups to Support AHA's "Go Red For Women®" Movement; Not Just a Man's Disease, Advocates Warn of Most Deadly Female Disease

CAMP HILL, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--One in three women dies from cardiovascular disease, according to the American Heart Association (AHA), but there are steps women of all ages can take to safeguard their heart. That's why Rite Aid is again supporting AHA's "Go Red For Women" movement by providing free heart health guides in all of its stores nationwide now through March and online at www.riteaid.com/health/.

“Rite Aid's most important goal as a network of neighborhood pharmacies is to empower its patients to take charge of their overall health and wellness. This entails more than just remembering regular checkups and taking medications appropriately as prescribed”

More than 4,800 Rite Aid stores also will help raise funds for AHA by collecting customer donations of $1 or more for red dress paper pinups from Jan. 31 to March 6. Pinups include six detachable money-saving coupons.

While Rite Aid's efforts emphasize women's heart health in an attempt to debunk heart disease's myth as being a "man's disease," the national dialogue on heart health benefits both men and women by increasing awareness of a disease responsible for more deaths in either sex than any other cause.

The 16-page heart health guide includes information about heart health at different ages, the dangers of heart disease and specific advice including:

• Recognizing the tell-tale signs of heart attack or stroke that can help a victim get life-saving medical attention within a critical time window
• Controlling high cholesterol – especially of the artery-clogging LDL kind – by reducing dietary fat intake, raising the HDL cholesterol levels and getting regular cholesterol checks
• Reducing high blood pressure and the damage it can cause to internal organs and arteries by increasing fruit and vegetable intake while avoiding alcohol and tobacco products
• Managing diabetes and the increased risk it brings for stroke or heart disease through consistent checkups and personalized diabetes wellness tips from a Rite Aid pharmacist

Also at www.riteaid.com/health/, there are links and additional information as well as interactive resources including:

• Support groups for heart wellness – and the related topic of weight management
• Personalized health info including fat intake limits, what type and how much cholesterol is healthy, and a full heart profile from the AHA
• Tips for eating heart healthy when dining out
• How caregivers can focus on heart health for seniors

To encourage patients to take charge of their heart health, Rite Aid is offering a rebate now through March 27. Purchases of $25 or more of select heart and overall health products earn customers Rite Aid gift cards of $10 to $25. More information is available at www.riteaid.com/health/.

"Rite Aid's most important goal as a network of neighborhood pharmacies is to empower its patients to take charge of their overall health and wellness. This entails more than just remembering regular checkups and taking medications appropriately as prescribed," said Robert Thompson, Rite Aid Executive Vice President, Pharmacy. "The research behind our heart awareness initiatives with the American Heart Association clearly shows how a little bit of lifestyle change literally can add years to a patient's life."

As some of the most accessible health care providers, Rite Aid pharmacists are available to counsel patients on heart health, their medications and heart healthy products.

Rite Aid's focus on heart health is part of its yearlong commitment to patient health and wellness. Each year Rite Aid offers free information, answers and guidance on health and wellness topics including diabetes, allergy awareness, skin care, oral health and weight management.

Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) is one of the nation's leading drugstore chains with more than 4,800 stores in 31 states and the District of Columbia with fiscal 2009 annual sales of more than $26.3 billion. Information about Rite Aid, including corporate background and press releases, is available through Rite Aid's Web site at www.riteaid.com.