Woonsocket, R.I. — CVS Caremark Corp. has named Mark Cosby, a department store executive, to head its retail pharmacy business, effective October 1. The appointment brings to a close the protracted search for a successor to Larry Merlo, who relinquished day-to-day oversight of the 7,200-store drug chain to become president and chief executive officer of
PHILADELPHIA — An advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration has recommended that GlaxoSmithKline PLC’s (GSK) diabetes drug Avandia should remain on the market, but possibly with tough new restrictions and new warnings. Of the advisory panel’s 33 members, 12 voted for withdrawal of Avandia, 10 favored restricting its sales and enhancing its label
MONTREAL — Pharmaprix stores will make their debit card readers more accessible to disabled customers, under an agreement with the Quebec Human Rights Commission. Pharmaprix, operated by Toronto-based Shoppers Drug Mart Corp., will connect debit card readers to cash registers with a movable cable, the commission said Wednesday. To prevent debit information theft, many chains
RONKONKOMA, N.Y. — Dietary supplements supplier NBTY Inc. has agreed to be purchased by private equity firm Carlyle Group for $3.8 billion in one of the biggest private equity deals thus far in 2010. Carlyle’s $55 a share cash offer is 47% above NBTY’s stock close on Wednesday. NBTY announced the deal a day after
NEW YORK — Former CVS Caremark Corp. chairman Mac Crawford and Wilbur Ross Jr. of WL Ross & Co. are forming a joint venture to invest in and restructure health care companies. The partnership could spend more than $1 billion to "build a major position in health care," Ross said. The venture pairs turnaround specialist
WASHINGTON — Retail sales slipped in June for the second consecutive month, fueling fears that the economy’s turnaround will lose steam over the remainder of the year. Sales dipped 0.5% in June, the Commerce Department reported today. The decline came on the heels of a 1.1% drop in May. Last month’s spending was dragged down
RALEIGH, N.C. — Pharmaceutical industry veteran Dick Domann has been named vice president of sales and business development for the Kerr Health unit of Kerr Drug. "Dick’s immense pharmaceutical background makes him a wonderful addition to our team,” said Kerr chief executive officer Tony Civello. "Dick is highly regarded both in the industry and in
WASHINGTON — Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has named John Castellani its new president and chief executive officer, effective September 1. Castellani will join the trade group after more than nine years as president and CEO of the Business Roundtable, an association of corporate chief executive officers. Castellani will succeed former PhRMA president
WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. — Merck & Co. is planning to phase out operations at eight research sites and eight manufacturing sites. It is also continuing to consolidate office facilities worldwide as part of the global merger restructuring program that began last December following its acquisition of Schering-Plough Corp. The company explained that the goal of
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The provincial government will cut generic drug prices by reducing rebates manufacturers pay to pharmacies, including British Columbia-based London Drugs and Pharmasave. At the same time the province’s drug stores will get government funding for new services, including medication therapy management, especially for elderly patients and those with chronic diseases. The
TORONTO — Community pharmacies in Ontario construed somewhat positively the announcement on May 17 by Deb Matthews, the provincial Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, that she intended to postpone the introduction of new regulations governing pharmacy remuneration for about a month. They saw the development as possibly signaling some modifications in the specifics of
TORONTO — How will community pharmacy fare under the new plans for remuneration to be published in final form soon by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care? That theme dominated both formal and informal discussions among delegates to the annual conference of the Canadian Association of Chain Drug Stores held here last month.
NEW YORK — A successful pilot program has set the stage for CVS Caremark Corp.’s rollout of its Consumer Engagement Engine, which provides real-time clinical messaging to pharmacists. The clinical communications are integrated into normal pharmacy work flow, becoming part of the prescription filling process, CVS Caremark president and chief operating officer Larry Merlo told
WASHINGTON — Pharmacists are the most trusted source for medical research information, followed by patient groups and the federal government, according to a recent survey on a variety of health care issues. The poll of 1,000 adults in the United States, commissioned by Research!America and Eli Lilly and Co. and conducted by Charlton Research Co.,
