DEERFIELD, Ill. — The acquisition of Rite Aid Corp. culminates sweeping change at Walgreens in the space of a little over three years. In linking its fortunes, starting in June 2012, to Alliance Boots GmbH and its dynamic leader, Stefano Pessina, the chain adopted a global outlook focusing simultaneously on scale and efficiency. Its merger
BALTIMORE — Rite Aid Corp. this month celebrated the grand reopening of a store destroyed in the Baltimore riots earlier this year. Executive vice president of operations Bryan Everett was joined by Rep. Elijah Cummings (D., Md.), Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and other city, state and community officials at a ribbon cutting marking the reopening
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart is again using its scale to bolster health care. The retailer has begun an initiative focusing on preventive care and supporting overall well-being across its entire assortment — in stores and online — through events, education, and an expanded assortment of products and services. For the second year, Walmart is working
SAN FRANCISCO — Health Mart is kicking off its third town hall event series to help pharmacies implement medication synchronization. The “Get in Sync: Medication Synchronization” events encourage pharmacists to consider an appointment-based model with medication synchronization, shifting them from reactive prescription filling to a service orientation. Health Mart will host more than 100 complimentary
WASHINGTON — Slow growth is foreseen for health insurance enrollment through the Affordable Care Act exchanges, the Obama administration said this month. Coverage by the end of 2016 will barely exceed current levels, the administration said. Sign-ups during the ACA’s upcoming open enrollment season will bring the number of covered individuals to 10 million, up
NEW YORK — As much as the chain drug industry has consolidated, there is room for more mergers and acquisitions. That’s evident from the M&A speculation swirling about the sector in the U.S. and Canada, as well as recent activity. Lending credibility to the speculation is none other than Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) chief executive
WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS/pharmacy is adding hearing centers in seven stores and providing optical services in another five. The hearing centers are debuting in greater Dallas and Cleveland, while the vision services will be unveiled around Washington, D.C./Baltimore. “Hearing and optical services are a great fit with the existing health offerings in our stores, including
WASHINGTON — A pilot program for an enhanced medication therapy management model for Medicare Part D has been welcomed by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores. While NACDS is reviewing with member companies the 2017 launch by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), association president and chief executive officer Steve Anderson said
WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS Health has established two partnerships to drive faster innovation and expand areas of focus for connected health solutions. The company has joined with start-up accelerator MassChallenge and digital health venture fund Rock Health to propel digital health initiatives. The partnerships follow the opening of the CVS Digital Innovation Lab in June.
NEW YORK — Retailers this month became liable for credit card fraud if they did not upgrade point-of-sale equipment to accept chip-enabled cards. Chains had to be enabled for so-called EMV (Europay, MasterCard and Visa) cards as of October 1 to avoid liability for fraud. The chip in the cards has a unique encryption code,
WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS/pharmacy plans to add hearing centers in seven stores and provide optical services in another five stores. CVS said Monday that the hearing centers are launching this month at stores in the greater Dallas and Cleveland areas, while the vision services will be offered later this fall inside stores within the Washington,
NEW YORK — Chain drug executives Helena Foulkes and Ornella Barra are among the “Most Powerful Women” in business listed by Fortune magazine. Foulkes, president of CVS/pharmacy, was ranked 14th on the list of 51 women in the U.S. Barra, president and chief executive officer of global wholesale and international retail at Walgreens Boots Alliance
DEERFIELD, Ill. — Lauren Brindley has joined Walgreens as group vice president and general merchandise manager for beauty and personal care. She succeeded Shannon Curtin, who left to pursue other opportunities. Brindley has served in commercial roles in Boots — mainly in beauty and personal care — for the last 10 years. She started her
WOONSOCKET, R.I. — Cigarette purchases across the retail spectrum have declined measurably in the year since CVS/pharmacy banned tobacco sales, CVS Health reported this month. “One year ago, we stopped selling tobacco products because it conflicted with our purpose of helping people on their path to better health,” said CVS Health chief medical officer Dr.
