Opinion

Whether it was Otto von Bismarck or the 19^th century American poet John Godfrey Saxe who first warned lovers of sausage and/or the law to never watch either being made, it is pretty clear that the Democrats don’t want you to know too much about how the healthreform-wurst is getting made. They don’t even want C-SPAN to see.

Not quite, but the continued evolution of Kerr Drug’s Community Healthcare Center store concept certainly offers a glimpse into what role community pharmacy could play in the American healthcare system of the future—and it goes far beyond just medication therapy management. Like the deal CVS Caremark announced in November with Generation Health, pharmacogenomics, the study of how genetics influence drug response, represents the new frontier of community pharmacy. And it’s a brave new world out there, to be sure.

A couple of issues back I wrote a column about a question a guy asked me at conference earlier this fall: “So, who’s bigger—CVS or Walgreens?” Ironically, it was the week each company opened its 7,000th store. The point: If you’re measuring these companies based solely on who operates the most stores, if that’s the way you’re keeping score, you’re watching the wrong game.

I still believe that.

“Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t; and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it.”—Robert Frost

It is a maxim that has been proven time and again in our culture: The biggest is not always the best. Think about it. What do Apple, Neutrogena, Movado, Aveeno, Tom’s of Maine, Swatch and Bose have in common? Although none of these brands are the largest in their segment of business, they clearly are the “thought leaders” and the cultural or growth catalysts in their class.

Remember “Gilligan’s Island?” Man, that was a great show. The thing about “Gilligan’s Island” was that no matter what else happened, you just knew they were never getting off that island.

It really didn’t matter how rock bands, movie stars or Russian cosmonauts washed up on shore, the passengers and crew of the S.S. Minnow were never getting off that island.

And that’s why eventually you just had to stop watching. You already knew the ending, and at some point the jokes just got stale.

“So, who’s bigger—CVS or Walgreens?”

What kind of an impact can you make in 30 seconds or even two minutes?

For Walgreens president and CEO Greg Wasson, 30 seconds was plenty of time.

Louise: [Sneezing and coughing incessantly.] HAAAA-CHOOOOOOO! Oh, Harry! Can you believe the doctor won’t be able to see me until a week from next Monday?

Harry: A week from next Monday? That’s almost two weeks from now. That seems like an awfully long time to wait—what if it’s something serious?

Louise: At this rate, whatever it is, I’ll either be all better or stone dead by the time I get an appointment!