WALGREENS

MINNETONKA, Minn. — A Supervalu banner announced that it will offer patients access to a program created by UnitedHealth Group's Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Tuesday evening elected Jan Babiak, a retired managing partner for Ernst & Young, to its board of directors. Babiak, who joins the board as an independent director, becomes the board’s 12th member.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Patients prefer to fill their 90-day prescription medications at community pharmacies over mail-order pharmacies when co-pay costs are similar, according to a study conducted by Walgreens.

CHICAGO — Drug maker Pfizer is taking a marketing campaign for one of its drugs to Walgreens' Chicago flagship store to raise awareness about high cholesterol and healthy eating, the company said Monday.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — It's no secret that something has been afoot for the last few years: Retail pharmacies have gradually metamorphosed from places to pick up pills to destinations for health care — places to get everything from vaccines to care from nurses and even from physicians.

Given retail pharmacies' evolving role, the growing number of employers starting wellness programs has opened up a number of possibilities, which some retail pharmacy companies have already started exploring.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — You can't uncrack an egg. That's the preliminary reply Express Scripts gave to the district court hearing the case filed by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the National Community Pharmacist Association to block the merger between Express Scripts and Medco. The pharmacy industry's concern, however, revolves around what kind of beast will hatch from this ESI-Medco merger if that cracked egg isn't unscrambled.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — The release by Walgreens of case studies that detail how retail pharmacy can expand access to immunizations is obviously important on several fronts, but it really makes one stop and wonder: What could be done if laws didn't vary by state in terms of what types of vaccinations pharmacists can deliver?

BOSTON — A study conducted by Brodeur Partners has unveiled the most relevant retailers in the United States.