Patient Compliance

CHICAGO - Teamster-represented pharmacists at Albertsons Corp.'s Osco Drug stores have voted to authorize a strike if a contract can't be reached.

LUTZ, Fla. - A Publix supermarket in Lutz, Fla., was evacuated on Monday after customers complained of breathing difficulties, according to a report in the St. Petersburg Times. No one was seriously hurt, and no cause was determined.

ROME - People should get no more than 10 percent of their calories from sugar, eat more fruit and vegetables and exercise moderately to cut risks of chronic disease, two United Nations agencies said on Monday.

LANDOVER, Md. - Giant Food Inc., a member of the Ahold USA group, has announced that its Giant Pharmacies is expanding its electronic prescription service through a partnership with DrFirst, a Rockville, Md.-based company that provides products and services to the healthcare community.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. is providing a new way for customers to access its pharmacy services -- on its web site.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A pharmacists' walkout that looked to be averted last month by Raley's Supermarkets could still happen as the pharmacists' union has failed to ratify a new contract, according to a report in today's Sacramento Bee.

CAIRO, Egypt - Under fire from activists, The Coca-Cola Co. announced Thursday it was joining with its bottlers in Africa to extend AIDS health care coverage, including access to expensive drugs, to tens of thousands of workers, The Associated Press reports.

Pharmacist factions are putting aside their differences to confront federal and state governments as the controversy over prescription costs widens.