COVID

These Mass. supermarkets now have special hours for ‘at-risk’ shoppers

This includes shoppers over 60, pregnant women, and immunocompromised customers.

Whole Foods announced that it would open its doors one hour earlier each morning to shoppers 60 and older. Gene J. Puskar / AP, File

By Erin Kuschner

March 18, 2020

Related Links

Boston Helps

How restaurants are helping their employees — and how you can get involved
Restaurants

What restaurants can — and can’t — do during the coronavirus dine-in ban

Local grocery stores are recognizing a need to set aside special shopping hours for at-risk customers during the coronavirus pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have identified older adults and those with underlying medical conditions as being at a higher risk for getting very sick from COVID-19 compared with other people.

This week, a handful of supermarkets announced that they will relegate up to two hours in the morning to shoppers who are at a greater risk of contracting the virus, including shoppers over 60, pregnant women, and immunocompromised customers. Experts question how protective the measures really are.

Here’s a list of grocery stores that have designated special hours for at-risk shoppers:

Market Basket
Starting March 19, Market Basket will open its doors to shoppers who are 60 and older from 5:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Search for your nearest location here.

Roche Bros.
Starting March 20, Roche Bros. will open to senior shoppers and disabled citizens only from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. every morning. The stores will open to the rest of the public from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Search for your nearest location here.

Shaws
At-risk shoppers are invited to stock up on groceries at Shaws from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The grocery chain is also shifting its hours at all stores from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Search for your nearest location here.

Star Market
Star Market will open to at-risk shoppers from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The grocery chain is also shifting its hours at all stores from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Search for your nearest location here.

Stop & Shop
Starting March 19, Stop & Shop will open from 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. daily only to customers who are 60 years of age and older. Search for your nearest location here.

Whole Foods
Customers who are 60 and older are invited to shop one hour before the store opens to the rest of the public. New store hours and your store’s nearest location can be found here.

This is a growing list; please check back for updates.