Critical Limb-Threatening Ischemia (CLTI)

Rapidly increasing cost pressures from regulatory agencies and payers will restrain the pharmacies and drug stores market,” according to the ResearchAndMarkets.com report. “Government budgetary pressures are leading to lower pharmacy compensation for most countries with public health care. The consolidation of pharmacy benefit management firms in the U.S. has worked similarly, driving lower costs and margins and shifting prescription volumes to delivery of direct or mail order.

In today’s modern world, digitalization is everywhere. Pharmacies and other health stores are no exception. A Hungarian pharmacy chain recently approached Wallboard with the need to install over 200 screens in its retail stores all across the country. Their vision was to fill these screens with images and videos engagingly promoting different pharmaceutical products. The goal behind this project was to advertise products to customers, and also sell digital signage advertising space to their suppliers.

In the penultimate week of 2021, the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency use authorization to Paxlovid, a two-drug antiviral developed by Pfizer for treating individuals ages 12 and up who test positive for Covid-19 and are at high risk for progression to the severe form of the disease. When started within five days of symptom onset, Paxlovid seems to be highly effective at reducing hospitalization or death. That the drug can be taken at home is a major benefit over other therapeutic options, including another pill, molnupiravir, which may be less effective, as well as remdesivir and sotrovimab, both of which must be administered intravenously at hospitals or clinics.

The evidence shows that tailored pharmacy-based interventions to improve medication adherence are cost effective for cardiovascular disease prevention. For cardiovascular disease management, healthcare cost averted exceeds the cost of implementation for a favorable return on investment from a healthcare systems perspective.

With a growing awareness of the importance of health and care, pharmacies have an unprecedented opportunity to become central players in the new health economy. But with the opportunity also comes a challenge. To grow into their role as healthcare hubs for the community, pharmacies need to diversify their services, and focus on much more than simply delivering medications.

Sehat Sathi is currently delivering healthcare services and products to more than 35 lakh families. By the end of 2021, it expects to digitalise 50,000 pharmacies. It is helping pharmacies to connect with more than 5000 doctors to provide consultations in rural areas. More than 30,000 medical stores are working with the Sehat Sathi app from 15 states, says Nikhil Baheti, co-founder of this Rajasthan-based startup. “Sehat Sathi app has created a network of local medical stores across over 600 towns and cities to strengthen healthcare accessibility,” he says.

Covid testing kits will soon be sold at selected pharmacies across the country as Australia continues to reopen. Pharmaceutical company Roche Diagnostics Australia confirmed the Roche SARS-CoV-2 antigen self-test nasal kit would be sold at more than 500 pharmacies in NSW, Victoria, ACT and Queensland from November 1. The test comes in a pack of five tests for a recommended retail price of $54.50.

Actually, CVS' closures shouldn't come as a surprise. They are the latest moves in the long-running contraction of the US retail pharmacy sector. CVS (CVS), Walgreens (WBA) and Rite Aid (RAD) have been shuttering stores for years, while independent pharmacies have come under pressure from chains. Drug store closures can hurt local communities, creating access gaps for medications and essentials.

Truepill’s Virtual Pharmacy platform works behind the scenes to help payers, PBMs and health systems alike create customized, digital storefronts for prescriptions and OTC products, ultimately lowering costs and modernizing the shopping experience. Furthermore, the new offering provides the opportunity to improve specific use cases for OTC benefit utilization by creating a simple destination for patients to redeem their benefits.

The pharmaceutical industry has a paper problem. Every single box of medicine must include a paper insert with dosing instructions and technical information that can measure several feet long. Some patients read it over, some patients stash it in a drawer, while others just dump it in the trash. These pesky printouts can cause a massive headache for the entire drug supply chain if they are outdated or incorrect and result in a recall.

Like food deserts, pharmacy deserts have cropped up across the nation, which could further hamper the much-maligned Covid-19 vaccine rollout.

Retail pharmacy is a very important retail business to run as it holds the trust and responsibility of all its customers. Your customer trusts you enough to have an intimate interaction regarding their health, share sensitive information, and takes recommendations regarding products, and, therefore, expect the best services. They expect their concerns to be heard; they want to feel informed and get the best-in-class products.

Since March 2020, consumers have gravitated to online shopping in record numbers. New shopping behaviours have been embraced and maintained throughout the pandemic, and according to Forbes this eCommerce boom will intensify in the pharmacy sphere. “The global healthcare e-commerce market is estimated to reach $435.8 billion in revenue by 2025, therefore it is clear that there is both a want and a need for online health products and services among businesses and the general consumer population".

In a statement to CNN on Friday, Walgreens spokesperson Kris Lathan said, "While the vast majority of our stores are open and operating with normal business hours, the ongoing labor shortage combined with the surge of COVID-19 cases has resulted in isolated instances in which we've had to adjust operating hours or temporarily close a limited number of stores."

Each of the panelists shares their thoughts on what pharmacies could do to elicit more in-person visits from them, which includes a better offering of cosmetics and hair care products, and how social media plays a role in their own shopping preferences. The panel also shares insights on some of the differences between pharmacies on the East and West coast of the country, and how each could take notes on better improving their offerings.

The program is expected to be fully up and running by early February, and masks are to arrive at their destinations, which include local pharmacies and community health centers, with accompanying flyers and signage from the Department of Health and Human Services, which paid for the masks, according to a CNN report.

It will involve on-site PCR COVID-19 swab tests as well as a drop-off program for specimens collected at home, similar to the system being implemented at public schools across the province.
COVID-19. An internal document sent to Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacy employees and obtained by CP24 this week says they will be able to accept symptomatic high-risk close contacts of those already diagnosed with COVID-19 and those with symptoms, by appointment only.

CVS says it is planning to close about 900 stores over the next three years, starting in 2022. The company says it’s an effort to review the retail side of its business, and focus on more health care services. The pharmacies of the future are going to be less about picture frames and beach balls, said Northwestern Professor Craig Garthwaite, and more about health services and primary care.

As per Indian Economic Survey 2021, the Indian pharma market is estimated at $42 billion. The retail pharmacy market is ripe for disruption with e-pharma players constituting 2-3 percent of the overall retail pie. With around 93 percent pharma retailing unorganised, offline pharmacies face issues, which technology can address, including fewer discounts, unavailability of medicines, and longer waiting time.

Covid testing kits will soon be sold at selected pharmacies across the country as Australia continues to reopen. Pharmaceutical company Roche Diagnostics Australia confirmed the Roche SARS-CoV-2 antigen self-test nasal kit would be sold at more than 500 pharmacies in NSW, Victoria, ACT and Queensland from November 1.

The company announced in a news release that it will focus more of its efforts on digital growth and turning its stores into destinations that offer a range of health-care services, from flu shots to diagnostic tests. Store closures will begin in spring 2022. The company said it plans to close about 300 per year. In total, the closures will add up to roughly 9% of CVS’ nearly 10,000 U.S. stores. The company declined to share the specific locations of stores that will shutter.

Digital healthcare company Push Doctor has partnered with Well Pharmacy, an independent pharmacy chain, on the launch of the UK’s first ‘pharmacy-first’ digital health service in a bid to give patients direct access to local community pharmacists.

Moins d'un an après son lancement, la plateforme de santé numérique Helena compte 280.000 patients actifs et 600 pharmacies connectées. La raison de ce succès ? « Tant les pharmaciens que les patients tirent profit de la plateforme », déclare Stijn De Jaeger, Pharma Communications Specialist chez Corilus.

AmerisourceBergen plans to buy most of Walgreens’ Alliance Healthcare business for $6.5 billion. The deal will let Walgreens focus more on its retail pharmacy and healthcare businesses.