WALGREENS

DALLAS — The Network of Executive Women has elected Catherine Lindner, former VP retail marketing for Walgreens, to serve as board chair.

Lindner was elected at the network's annual members meeting at the NEW Leadership Summit on Oct. 22 in Dallas. More than 1,000 industry executives attended the event.

Annie Zipfel, division VP customer marketing for retailer REI, was elected board vice chair. Zipfel most recently served as the network's chair of marketing and communications.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Recognizing the important role its community pharmacy team plays in helping people get, stay and live well, Walgreens is celebrating its more than 27,000 pharmacists and their commitment to patient care in communities nationwide during American Pharmacists Month.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Improving medication adherence may be the key to reducing hospital re-admission rates, according to a new issue brief by a health policy research organization.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — WellTransitions could be couched as another way in which Walgreens is striving to create solutions that lower the cost of overall health care outside of the physical retail pharmacy space, because it is. WellTransitions also could be characterized as a program that will routinely chip away at the $25 billion associated with hospital re-admissions by having more prescriptions filled at the pharmacy counter, because it does. But the real impact of this news? The real clincher?

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens recently announced the appointment of Brad Fluegel as SVP and chief strategy officer. Fluegel will be responsible for corporate strategy, business development, project management and the corporate consulting team while also working on venture capital efforts. 

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — American Well, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina and Walgreens' Take Care Health Systems have collaborated to make telehealth services available to thousands of BCBSNC employees located throughout North Carolina. The service, called OnlineCareNC, allows BCBSNC employees from home or work to receive a healthcare consultation from credentialed Take Care Health System nurse practitioners, health coaches or nutritionists through two-way video, secure text chat or phone.

DENVER — Busy Breathers on Tuesday announced the availability of its portable oxygen backpacks on e-commerce sites Drugstore.com and Walgreens.com and in 75 Walgreens locations throughout Colorado.  

 DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens pharmacists are on the frontlines of a new transition of care program, WellTransitions, which brings hospitals and health systems together with Walgreens in a coordinated care model designed to reduce readmission rates and overall healthcare costs while improving patient health outcomes and medication adherence, Walgreens announced Tuesday. The WellTransitions program is being rolled out as thousands of hospitals nationwide face possible penalties from Medicare for patient readmission rates that are too high, under a new law that took effect Oct.