Walgreens Take Care tour rolls out with free healthcare screenings

DEERFIELD, Ill. —Walgreens kicked off an expanded 2008 Take Care Health Tour last month that will hit 300 cities in 12 months, cover more than 240,000 miles and provide more than $35 million in free health screenings and services.

The expanded 2008 program features 10 customized traveling education and health-screening vehicles, compared with the four-vehicle tour in 2007. This is the tour’s fourth year of crossing the country.

Walgreens and its Take Care clinic division will offer patients six free screenings, including total cholesterol levels, blood pressure, bone density, glucose levels, waist circumference and body mass index. The services are worth more than $115 in value, the company asserted. Patients will be served on a walk-in basis.

“This tour will provide better health in communities across the country, particularly in areas most in need of affordable health care,” said Walgreens president Greg Wasson.

Participating sponsors of the Walgreens Take Care Health Tour include Eli Lilly and Company; LifeScan, the maker of the OneTouch glucose monitoring system; Johnson & Johnson; GlaxoSmithKline and Procter & Gamble.