Walgreens 2008 Annual Report Download - page 15

2008 Walgreens Annual Report Page 13
Specialty pharmacy builds
health and wellness services
Specialty pharmacy – comprised of high-cost
biologic, infusible, injectable and cancer drugs
requiring enhanced care – accounts for one-fifth
of the $280 billion Americans spend annually on
pharmaceuticals. By 2010, half of all Food &
Drug Administration drug approvals will be for
specialty medications. As a result of Walgreens
recent acquisitions of providers such as
Medmark, Schraft’s and OptionCare, today the
company is the largest independent specialty
pharmacy provider in the country.
“We knew nothing about hemophilia until
Julian was born,” says their mother, Cazandra
MacDonald. “Now these treatments are just
part of our lives. Julian infuses himself with
the blood factor that helps the clotting
process, and my husband and I infuse
Caeleb. Our care coordinator makes sure
we’re supplied with enough blood factor,
as well as ancillary supplies.”
A 2006 study showed that hemophilia
patients receiving care from Walgreens
Home Care had a 27 percent lower rate
of hospitalization than hemophilia patients
cared for elsewhere. Other conditions
for which Walgreens provides specialized
services include treatments for cancer,
immune deficiency, infertility, multiple
sclerosis, nutritional disorders and
rheumatoid arthritis.
Placing pharmacies
near physicians
District manager Rod Andrews (left) and
district pharmacy supervisor Joseph Moy
visit Walgreens new store in Garden City,
New York, which is on the first floor of a
two-story wellness center. The building
includes cardiology, fertility and orthopedic
clinics serving patients who can now
conveniently fill their prescriptions at
Walgreens. “This location fits perfectly
with our strategy to expand specialty
pharmacy,” says Andrews. “We have an
arrangement where patients from the
fertility clinic can order medications from
Schraft’s, the specialty pharmacy we
acquired in 2005.”
Providing home infusion
and respiratory therapy
Rose Holt (left) in Asheville, North Carolina,
is one of 44 million American caregivers.
She helps Addie Thomas (right) five days
a week by cleaning, cooking and running
errands. Caregivers like Holt rely on more
than 100 Walgreens Home Care facilities in
36 states for products, services and health
information. The company provides infusion
medications and services and respiratory
care. Walgreens also sells home medical
equipment, including walkers, canes and
sleep apnea products.
Total Specialty Pharmacy
Drug Expenditures
In billions of dollars, projected
Sources: National Association of
Chain Drug Stores and Walgreens