Category Archives: Wholesale Pharmacy

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/155e8f/the_pharmaceutical) has announced the addition of the "The Pharmaceutical Market: Brazil" report to their offering. Concentration levels are expected to increase in the Brazilian wholesale and retailing sectors. In the wholesale sector, there are over 300 pharmaceutical wholesalers but this number continues to fall, due to mergers and acquisitions. Panarello, Profarma, Santa Cruz and Athos Pharma are the leading wholesalers. In October 2011, Profarma announced the acquisition of 60.0% of Prodiet. In the retailing sector, pharmacy chains account for around half of the private pharmacy sector by value but they only represent about 10.0% of the total number of outlets. Competition among the five leading pharmacy chains is fierce, and the sector has been consolidated by a wave of mergers in recent years, particularly in 2011. Three leading chains, DPSP, Raia Drogasil and Brazil Pharma, are incorporating their mergers/acquisitions in 2012, but the process of consolidation is expected to continue. The market is expected to witness further acquisitions of small- and medium-sized chains. ABRAFARMA believes that further mergers among the leading pharmacy chains should also be expected in the mid-term. Pague Menos is one of the leading pharmacy chains that could make a move in … Continue reading →

SAN MATEO, Calif., March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Satmetrix, the Net Promoter software company and leader in customer experience programs, today released its 2012 Net Promoter Industry Benchmarks for the financial services, insurance, online services, retailing, technology, telecommunications, and travel and hospitality industries. This year's study was expanded to reach more than 30,000 U.S. consumers, with ratings for more than 200 brands across 22 industry sectors. This year's study includes new coverage for auto service and repair, drug stores and pharmacies, hardware and home supply stores, hotels, and travel websites. Winners include admired brands such as USAA, Amazon.com, Costco, Virgin America, Apple, Trader Joe's and Wegmans. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120202/NY46467LOGO ) The Satmetrix Net Promoter Benchmarks are based on survey responses from U.S. consumers nationwide who rate their experience with the primary brands they use. The Net Promoter Score, or NPS, for each brand is based on customers' likelihood to recommend the company's product or service in the sector being rated. NPS is calculated as the percentage of customers who are promoters, rating the company 9 or 10 on a 0 to 10 point scale, minus the percentage who are detractors, rating 6 or lower.Consumers also rate each brand on various aspects of … Continue reading →

SPRINGFIELD, Ill., March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --H. D. Smith, among the nation's largest pharmaceutical wholesalers, today announced the appointment of Bill Williams as company-wide chief financial officer (CFO).Mr. Williams, who served recently as the Company's interim CFO, will report to chairman and chief executive Dale Smith, and joins the executive leadership committee.The appointment is effective immediately. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120314/NY69737 ) "Bill has brought perspective to this pharmaceutical wholesale enterprise that elevates our customer excellence and accelerates our growth plan," said Dale Smith, chairman and CEO, H. D. Smith."Best practices shared from many Fortune 500 companies are quickly becoming part of our working culture and Bill's ideas and abilities are making a significant impact," he added. Mr. Williams comes to H. D. Smith from Tatum LLC, a leading national firm specializing in interim executive staffing. In this capacity, he served as a partner in the Tatum Chicago office.During his career, Mr. Williams has served in financial oversight roles at multiple Fortune 500 companies including Kraft Foods, Allied Signal and Martin Brower Company (the largest McDonald's Corporation distributor in the Americas). "H. D. Smith is at the heart of supporting our nation's health and wellness through an extensive partnership with community and institutional … Continue reading →

SKOKIE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Topco Associates LLC announced today that Associated Food Stores, Inc. and McLane Global have joined the association, expanding its membership to 53 retail, wholesale and foodservice companies. Were excited that Associated Food Stores and McLane Global are now Topco members, said Randy Skoda, Topco President and CEO. They are both outstanding organizations whose joining further enhances the collective strength of Topco and the membership. We look forward to working with them to help drive value for their companies and customers. Associated Food Stores will participate in Topcos Pharmacy program, which now has 23 committed members representing more than $3.2 billion in sales volume. Independent retailer-owned Associated Food Stores is a warehouse based in Salt Lake City that provides complete warehouse facilities and services to nearly 500 grocers in eight western states. In the grocery business, volume speaks, said Neal Berube, President and CEO of Associated Food Stores. By joining with the other Topco Pharmacy members, we are confident our member- and corporate-owned in-store pharmacies along with our other partners will experience a significant decrease in their cost of goods. We looked at many opportunities to partner and consciously made the decision that Topco would be our best … Continue reading →

SILVER SPRING, Md., March 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Sunpeaks Ventures, Inc. (OTCBB: SNPK.OB - News) (PINKSHEETS: SNPK.OB - News) (the "Company" or "Sunpeaks Ventures") and its wholly owned subsidiary Healthcare Distribution Specialist, LLC ("HDS") is pleased to announce that since July 2011 Dakota Drug Inc. has been a wholesale distributor of Clotamin. Clotaminis the world's first specialized OTC multivitamin product designed exclusively for use by patients on Warfarin and other anticoagulants (blood thinners). Founded in 1948, Dakota Drug is an independent full service healthcare distributor dedicated to providing service to pharmacies, retail drug stores and hospitals. "As we have indicated, the Sunpeaks team is systematically targeting every essential wholesaler with the goal of reaching each small and medium sized pharmacy across the United States," stated Mackie A. Barch, CEO of Sunpeaks. "It is through these well-known distributors and pharmacies that our brand will continue to grab more market presence. Additional wholesale distribution agreements are expected to be completed in the near future that will expand Clotamin's availability nationwide." Clotamin is now available in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Illinois, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota. About Sunpeaks Ventures, Inc. Sunpeaks Ventures, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary Healthcare Distribution Specialists, LLC … Continue reading →

PHARR A low reimbursement rate for Medicaid patients is crippling independent pharmacies in the Rio Grande Valley to the point that most will go out of business, state Sen. Juan Chuy Hinojosa said Wednesday while standing inside a small drugstore that closed its doors last week. About a dozen Valley pharmacies went out of business since the Health and Human Services Commission placed 400,000-plus Medicaid beneficiaries into its managed care program March 1 in an effort to more efficiently deliver health care to the poor and to those with disabilities. But Hinojosa, D-McAllen, said the profit-driven companies that are now managing Medicaid dramatically cut reimbursement rates for small, independent pharmacies while paying a higher fee to the chains. Quite frankly, the dispensing fee and the reimbursement rates are unacceptable, Hinojosa said at a news conference surrounded by dozens of pharmacists at Sam Houston Pharmacy, a Pharr-based drugstore that shut down the first day of managed care. They were never intended to be that low. The Valley made the long-delayed switch to managed care March 1 despite opposition from local legislators, who successfully delayed its rollout here for about a decade. Under managed care, the state contracts the coverage for its … Continue reading →

By Amy Pavuk, Orlando Sentinel 12:48 p.m. EST, March 6, 2012 A federal appeals court has temporarily stopped the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration from banning Cardinal Health, a prescription-drug wholesale distributor with a facility in Lakeland, from distributing controlled substances. The ruling is the latest of legal twists in the case against Cardinal, which distributes drugs to more than 2,500 pharmacies in the Southeast. DEA claims in court records that Cardinal Health has a history of problems and violated a memorandum of agreement the company made with the agency. In early February, DEA attempted to suspend Cardinal's license, but the company fought back. Cardinal Health sought a temporary restraining order against DEA, and a judge granted that request Feb. 3. But after hearing arguments in the case, which is being handled in the District of Columbia, a judge dissolved that temporary restraining order. The judge ruled last week that all orders for controlled substances, which include the highly addictive and powerful painkiller oxycodone, must be discontinued. Cardinal Health appealed that decision, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Friday that the DEA's immediate suspension order be stayed pending further order of the court. Read … Continue reading →

TAMPA, Florida, February 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- PAC more accurately tracks true drug acquisition cost Leading drug database provider, Elsevier/Gold Standard, announced today an agreement with Glass Box Analytics to become the exclusive distributor of a new price type, Predictive Acquisition Cost (PAC). Glass Box Analytics developed PAC to address the industry need for a pricing standard that more closely tracks true drug acquisition cost. PAC employs predictive analytics techniques to estimate acquisition cost considering various factors, including industry MAC benchmarks, published price lists, existing price benchmarks, drug dispensation metrics, supply-demands measures, and survey-based acquisition costs. "By combining a range of data sources, we are able to create a drug price type that more accurately tracks true acquisition cost and more effectively supports pricing activities than existing price types," said Todd Grover, CEO and Founding Partner of Glass Box Analytics. "Independent validation tests showed that PAC consistently tracked the actual drug acquisition cost far more effectively than AWP (Average Wholesale Price) or any other existing price type." AWP has long been the standard price type used throughout the industry to set contract terms and adjudicate claims. In recent years, however, industry leaders have expressed concerns about the accuracy and reliability … Continue reading →

NEW YORK (TheStreet) - Medco Health Solutions(MHS) and Intuitive Surgical(ISRG) both hit 52-week highs on Monday. Both stocks are rated buy at TheStreet Ratings. Medco Health Solutions The pharmacy benefit manager got a boost as expectations grew that it would be able to complete its planned merger with Express Scripts(ESRX), according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited a report by anti-trust research firm MLex as saying it expects the combination to win anti-trust approval. The company also reported its above-consensus fourth-quarter earnings last week. "New business trends were more positive than we expected, as the company has won $2.6 billion in gross new business in 2012," William Blair analysts wrote in a Feb. 21 report. "While net new wins are still negative for the year (given previously disclosed losses), there have been no new significant losses since the third-quarter call, suggesting net new business wins over the past three months were also about $1 billion." Shares of Medco Health Solutions hit a 52-week high of $68.40. The stock's 52-week low of $44.60 was set on Oct. 4. Medco Health Solutions has an estimated price-to-earnings ratio for next year of 14.06; the average for health care providers is 18.75. For … Continue reading →

Acquisition agreement reflects “natural step” for Access Plans as it becomes part of a leading risk advisory firm. Scottsdale, AZ (PRWEB) February 27, 2012 QualityStocks would like to highlight Access Plans, Inc., a publicly traded membership and insurance marketing company, with three complementary distribution channels offering multiple opportunities for growth. The Wholesale Plans Division specializes in turnkey, private label membership benefit plans offered through retail outlets including rent-to-own centers. The Retail Plans Division markets healthcare-related discount products and services to consumers through third party marketers. Program components in both membership plan divisions range from medical, dental and pharmacy discounts to grocery, restaurant, automotive, travel and other consumer discounts. The Insurance Marketing Division comprises America’s Health Care Plans, one of the nation’s largest independent agent networks for distributing individual major medical health insurance. In the company’s news today, Access Plans announced it will be acquired by Aon Affinity, a unit of global risk management business, Aon Corporation. Per the agreement, Aon Affinity will acquire all Access Plans outstanding shares and options to acquire the company’s common stock for cash consideration of approximately $70.1 million, subject to adjustment for various necessary and closing expenses; assuming a net cash amount of $15.0 million, … Continue reading →