Medication Management

MAULDIN, S.C. -- Two Bruno's supermarkets in Alabama and one Bi-Lo in South Carolina have opened Wellspot Health and Wellness in-store centers, adding to the list of supermarkets that are taking one-stop shopping to a new level.

LAKELAND, Fla. -- Publix Super Markets here said yesterday it has signed an exclusive agreement with The Little Clinic LLC in Louisville, Ky., to open medical clinics within an unspecified number of Publix stores this year. The regional retailer will place the first clinics in the Miami, Orlando, and Tampa markets in the first half of 2006.

Giant of Landover is automating its way to a more convenient method of serving pharmacy customers.

LANDOVER, Md. -- Ahold USA division Giant Food installed an automated refill prescription pickup kiosk at a Reston, Va. unit to make it easier for shoppers there to retrieve refills when it is convenient for them.

WASHINGTON -- AFL-CIO secretary-treasurer Richard Trumka called on leading drugstore chain Walgreen Co. yesterday to reform its pharmacy safety and labor practices to protect consumers.

As more consumers turn to alternative remedies for what ails them, retailers can capitalize on this new popularity.

Looking ahead to persistent shortages of skilled personnel, Schnucks and Brookshire Bros. are trying robotic prescription dispensers to keep service levels up to snuff.

HOUSTON -- Regional retailer H.E. Butt Grocery Co. here is joining forces with Hartford, Conn.-based health insurance provider Aetna to market a new, co-branded Medicare Part D prescription drug plan at HEB stores with in-store pharmacies in Texas, the companies said yesterday.