AUGUSTA – Maine is setting up a bulk-purchasing alliance to drive down drug costs for independent pharmacies, which tend to have lower sales volumes than larger drugstores.

Officials also announced on Monday a pilot program to support sole pharmacies in rural communities, such as Island Pharmacy in Stonington, which had said a week earlier it would withdraw from MaineCare, Healthy Maine and Maine Rx-Plus drug programs.

Island Pharmacy, which also serves Deer Isle, cited recent cuts in reimbursements for filling government-funded prescriptions in its announcement.

Island Pharmacy and an independent, inland drugstore that officials have yet to choose will participate in the pilot program to ensure they can continue to provide services to rural communities.

Details of the pilot program have yet to be worked out, said Sen. Dennis Damon, D-Trenton.

The Stonington pharmacy and a small number of other rural pharmacies have a high percentage of customers who participate in the state’s prescription drug programs.

With lower volumes of business than larger pharmacies, they tend to have higher costs, state officials said. So, cutbacks in state reimbursements hit many of them hard.

With the newly announced programs to help small drugstores, Island Pharmacy has rescinded its notice of withdrawal from the state prescription drug programs.

Kevin Clancy, owner of Island Pharmacy, said withdrawing from state drug programs could have led to the business’s eventual closing. A letter to state officials expressed his “enormous gratitude” for the state’s response.