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Inside This Issue - News
The Federal Trade Commission has cleared the way for Express Scripts Inc.’s controversial acquisition of pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) Medco Health Solutions Inc. for about $29 billion. The National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) have filed a lawsuit to block the merger of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) Express Scripts Inc. and Medco Health Solutions Inc. Hundreds of chain drug executives, pharmacists and pharmacy students from across the country converged on Capitol Hill last month to lobby lawmakers about the vital role community pharmacy plays in the nation’s health care system. CVS Caremark Corp. has announced succession plans for the leadership of its pharmacy benefit management (PBM) business. Pointed questions from Supreme Court justices raised doubts last month about the viability of the health care reform law’s individual mandate. CVS Caremark Corp. plans to shutter its Beauty 360 outlets in order to focus on its core beauty business. Navarro Discount Pharmacy has opened its 31st store. Rite Aid Corp. has launched its own mobile application, offering iPhone and Android smartphone users a menu of pharmacy and shopper tools. The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and Global Market Development Center (GMDC) have agreed to team up to offer a conference on health, beauty and wellness next year. A federal appeals court here has denied attempts by California’s Department of Health Care Services to suspend a lower court’s earlier decision to block cuts in Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program. Walgreen Co. has launched the Walgreens Way to Well Health Tour with the National Urban League (NUL) as a charitable component of the drug chain’s Way to Well Commitment, a four-year, $100 million effort aimed at improving the everyday health of Americans. Congressional approval of President Obama’s budget proposals to increase Tricare beneficiary out-of-pocket expenses would force patients away from community pharmacies and into mail-order programs, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores says. Walgreen Co. and Sharecare, an online health care question-and-answer service, have teamed up to provide what they say is the largest searchable drug, supplements and wellness database on Facebook.
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