CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid Corp. is expanding its Rx Suncare product line, introduced last year, with two new items.

The drug store chain said Monday the new products, Rx Suncare Sport SPF 70 and Rx Suncare HairGuard, are slated to roll out to stores in California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Washington this month and be available chainwide and online in April.

Rx Suncare Sport SPF 70, which carries The Skin Cancer Foundation’s Seal of Recommendation, meets consumers’ rising demand for a high SPF, giving them better protection for a longer period of time, and is is highly water- and sweat-resistant, according to Rite Aid.

The retailer said Rx Suncare Hair Guard is a color saver product with a unique heat-activated conditioner, providing shine with leave-in conditioners and light-reflective micro particles. Equivalent to an SPF 20 on skin, it protects chemically processed hair (color, perms, straightening) from damage caused by ultraviolet light exposure, which dulls color and strips hair of amino acids, making it weak and causing color to fade and ends to split, according to the company.

With the new offerings, the Rx Suncare line now spans 10 items, and all cost less than $10. The other products include Rx Suncare Lip Balm Sunblock SPF 45 0.15 oz., Rx Suncare Faces Sunblock SPF 50 4-ounce, Rx Suncare Advanced Protection SPF 30 6-ounce, Rx Suncare Advanced Protection SPF 50 6-ounce, Rx Suncare Sport Sunblock SPF 50 6-ounce (highly water resistant), Rx Suncare Kids Sunblock SPF 50 6-ounce, Rx Suncare Advanced Protection Continuous Spray SPF 30 6-ounce and Rx Suncare Burn Relief Mask 6-ounce.

Rite Aid introduced Rx Suncare last February to provide consumers with sun protection products that offered quality competitive with national and specialty brands but carried a much lower price. The initial eight products, seven of which carried the Skin Cancer Foundation’s seal, ranged in price from $2.49 to $9.99.

The pharmacy chain said Monday that the Rx Suncare line reflects its strategy to boost its private brand and exclusive brand offerings as well as to position Rite Aid as a first-choice health and beauty destination.

"Customer response to the new Rx Suncare line exceeded our expectations in 2009 and led to our introduction of two items requested by our customers: a higher SPF sport product and a hair protection product," Bryan Shirtliff, senior vice president of category management at Rite Aid, said in a statement. "Rite Aid again is very happy to be working with The Skin Cancer Foundation to educate and raise awareness about the risks and proper prevention of skin cancer from UV rays."