In this Issue

The Obama administration on the official White House website identifies “5 Important Numbers on Health Reform.” These include:

• Zero. The amount consumers would have to pay for premiums, co-insurance or co-payments on any preventive services;

• Fifty. The number of states that now offer insurance options to all people, regardless of any pre-existing conditions;

• One million. The number of doughnut-hole rebate checks mailed to seniors under Part D as of August 2010;

It’s about 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday. I usually wait a couple more days to write my column, but I don’t need to think any more about what to write.

My first insights into retailing came to me by way of my great aunt Agatha Mastromatteo-Corsello-Langella at the boutique she owned just off the corner of 72nd Street and Broadway, here in New York City. As I write this now, it has been less than three hours since she passed away in the company of her two sons Michael and Glen.

As Drug Store News suggested last month, legislation under consideration in Tennessee and Kentucky that would make the popular decongestant pseudoephedrine only available by prescription has, in fact, sparked interest in neighboring states. Arkansas shares a border with Kentucky, where a PSE prescription-only bill was filed in January, and Mississippi, one of two states that already has passed PSE prescription-only legislation.

American cuisine always has been influenced by the country’s diverse population. An expanding ethnic population and a proliferation of TV cooking shows have led to even greater interest in ethnic foods among American consumers.

Ethnic food sales are expected to increase 19% from 2010 to 2015, according to a recent report published by Mintel. The study revealed that 64% of U.S. households said that ethnic sauces, condiments and/or seasonings could be found in their kitchens.

With pharmacists across the country now able to administer vaccinations, the Department of Health and Human Services’ plan came at just the right time.

NEW YORK — Nestled within Bed Bath & Beyond’s Upper East Side location in New York City is the first-ever L’Oréal Paris “boutique.” The boutique carves out an oasis for beauty — a somewhat logical extension from the “bath” in “Bed Bath & Beyond.” The boutique features L’Oréal Paris skin care, hair care, cosmetics and hair color products.

NEW YORK — The Manhattan Institute has come up with a novel idea to help New York state slash its healthcare costs by a hefty $350 million by 2020: Expand access to retail health clinics.

Sounds simple enough, right? Think again.

The safety and efficacy debate around several children’s cough-cold ingredients over the past few years, the spate of recalls of several pediatric products in the past year and the more recent media-driven concern over a child accidentally overdosing are all helping to raise awareness of homeopathic solutions, especially as those are the kinds of issues that drive moms to the Internet in search of answers.