Wal-Mart generic drug program to begin offering 90-day supplies of more than 350 medications for $10 each

Wal-Mart officials on Monday announced the company will expand its discount program for generic drugs to offer three-month supplies for $10, the AP/Google.com reports (Harris, AP/Google.com, 5/5).

Under the expanded program, which begins Monday, customers will be able to purchase a 90-day supply of about 350 different generic medications for $10 at Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and Neighborhood Market pharmacies (Bloomberg/Chicago Tribune, 5/6).

The expanded program also will feature a second pricing tier in which customers will be able to purchase a 30-day supply of generic medications for osteoporosis, breast cancer, menopause, hormone deficiency and medications for other women's health issues for $9, the Wall Street Journal reports (Zimmerman, Wall Street Journal, 5/6). Wal-Mart officials also announced that its pharmacies will offer more than 1,000 OTC medications, or about one-third of the company's OTC medicine offerings, at a cost of $4 or less, including generic versions of popular medications such as Zantac, Pepcid and Claritin (AP/Los Angeles Times, 5/5). According to the Journal, the cost will be about 50% lower than that of similar medications offered at other U.S.-chain drug stores and supermarkets (Wall Street Journal, 5/6).

Comments

Wal-Mart Senior Vice President John Agwunobi said the company introduced the new initiatives as part of efforts to help customers save in their health care expenses, adding that it will benefit everyone. "It offers employers potential savings," Agwunobi said, adding, "It offers the customers significant savings. It also offers us the ability to add capacity to our pharmacies without adding people." Wal-Mart CEO Bill Simon said that while its mail-order and online programs for discounted generic medications have been strong and prescription volume has exceeded the company's expectations, he noted that the company will not follow some of its competitors in offering no-cost generic drugs at its in-store clinics. Simon said, "We're in business to make money," adding, "Free is a price that is not a long-term sustainable proposition" (AP/Los Angeles Times, 5/5).

Target Announces Matching Program

In related news, Target Corporation on Monday announced that it will match all facets of Wal-Mart's discounted generic drug and OTC drug plans (Wall Street Journal, 5/6). Target spokesperson Susan Geisen said the company will match the plans "to remain competitively priced with Wal-Mart" (Painter, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 5/6).