Martella's Closing Penn Laurel Pharmacy

Prescriptions and staff to move to Windber location after contract dispute with Express Scripts

Mar. 18, 2026 at 1:30pm

Martella's Pharmacies is closing its Penn-Laurel location in Central City, Cambria County, on March 28th. All prescriptions and nearly all staff will be moving to the Windber location to keep things simple for customers. Ownership cited its tough legal battle with Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit manager, as the reason for the closure.

Why it matters

The closure of the Penn-Laurel pharmacy location will impact residents in the Central City area who will now have to travel further to access Martella's services. However, the company is expanding home delivery options to help accommodate those who can't make the drive to Windber.

The details

Martella's Pharmacies is closing its Penn-Laurel location in Central City, Cambria County, on March 28th. According to WJAC News, in order to keep things simple for customers, all prescriptions and nearly all staff are moving to the Windber location. Ownership cited its tough legal battle with Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit manager, as the reasons for the move. Express Scripts terminated their contract with Martella's last year.

  • Martella's Penn-Laurel pharmacy location will close on March 28, 2026.
  • Prescriptions and staff will be moved to the Windber location at the end of March.

The players

Martella's Pharmacies

A local pharmacy chain with multiple locations in Cambria County, Pennsylvania.

Express Scripts

A pharmacy benefit manager that terminated its contract with Martella's last year, leading to the closure of the Penn-Laurel location.

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What’s next

Martella's is expanding home delivery options for the Central City area to help those who can't make the drive to the Windber location.

The takeaway

The closure of the Penn-Laurel pharmacy highlights the challenges small, independent pharmacies face when dealing with larger pharmacy benefit managers like Express Scripts, and the impact these closures can have on local communities.