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The pharmacy profession is in jeopardy if it does not respond to the immediate crisis of the understaffing of pharmacies, especially those affiliated with chain stores. This understaffing has become increasingly apparent with the recent injunction and monetary fine of $502,000 given to Walgreens for not providing consultation services…A leading cause of mortality is medication errors, 21% of which result from dispensing errors…reasons for errors…too many telephone calls, overload, too many patients, no one available to double-check, illegible/misinterpreted prescription, and staff shortage…Non-provision of consulting services also contributes to the issue of medication non-adherence. Only half of the 3.2 billion prescriptions dispensed in the United States are taken as prescribed. Approximately 125,000 deaths are linked to medication non-adherence annually…Despite multiple citations and fines imposed on chain pharmacies, and lawsuits brought on behalf of the general public, chain corporations still fail to counsel patients, and the result is a steady stream of medication errors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.’s deal to acquire Rite Aid Corp. is expected to draw antitrust scrutiny not only because the company would grow to 12,700 locations, but because of what goes on behind the scenes with drug payments…Federal Trade Commission…will look closely at whether the merging of the No. 1 and No. 3 pharmacy chains in the U.S. will lead to higher prices for prescription drugs...the FTC will probably review the approximately $9.4 billion deal market-by-market instead of on a national basis, since CVS, Walgreens, Wal-Mart and Rite Aid together control only about half of the U.S. retail pharmacy market...The rest is held by independent stores, smaller chains and mail-order companies. Walgreens is likely to sell or shutter some stores...

Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services just released data on 2016's Medicare Part D plans…analysis reveals that 85% of Medicare Part D regional prescription drug plans will have a preferred cost sharing network in 2016…Preferred network plans are controversial (and generally disliked) by pharmacy owners. That’s because reduced pharmacy profits are the biggest source of cost savings from these networks. Despite ongoing complaints, it's still full speed ahead for preferred networks.

Walgreen Co.’s persisting failure to remove expired sales tags from its shelves deceives customers and violates a 2014 settlement that sought to resolve the matter in Missouri, the state’s attorney general argued…in asking a state court to punish the pharmacy chain…Attorney General Chris Koster filed court documents asking a judge to hold the nation’s largest pharmacy retailer in contempt of the settlement and issue steeper fines, including up to $5,000 for each expired tag. Koster said that since July, undercover investigators have found a total of more than 1,300 shelf tags displaying sales prices that had expired...

Work to begin in early 2016…Walgreens is poised to roll out Epic EHRs (Care Everywhere) in its more than 400 healthcare clinics across the country…The Epic platform will replace Walgreens' own proprietary EHR…The goal…is to...enable more seamless communication with health systems and local providers, and gives us enhanced capabilities to deliver better health outcomes through greater care coordination and interoperability…our clinics play an increasingly important role in healthcare, supporting the healthcare system, provider practices and patients' medical homes, care coordination can be critical. This will benefit our patients, clinic providers and partners, and serves as an instrumental part of our strategic growth plan…

As part of its advocacy and community outreach efforts during American Pharmacists Month, the American Pharmacists Association is partnering with the co-chairs of the House Community Pharmacy Caucus, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, the National Community Pharmacists Association, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and Walgreens to host the 3rd Annual Capitol Hill Health Fair on October 28. Flu shots and health screenings, including bone density, glucose, cholesterol, blood pressure, and body composition will be available to members of Congress, staff, and the general public in the Rayburn Foyer in the Rayburn House Office Building from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.

Pharmacists from Walgreens and student pharmacists from:

• University of Maryland Eastern Shore School of Pharmacy
• University of Maryland School of Pharmacy
• Notre Dame of Maryland University School of Pharmacy
• Howard University College of Pharmacy
• Shenandoah University Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy
• Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy

Walgreens is providing up to $15 million worth of free flu shot vouchers through its collaboration with the Department of Health and Human Services, in an effort to improve immunization rates among uninsured and underinsured…the voucher initiative has been instrumental in helping to protect more people from the flu each season,… providing access to flu shots at no cost for those who are eligible, we can make a significant impact by protecting more people throughout the flu season…

Late last week, Walgreens Boots Alliance filed an 8-K with the full text of its merger agreement with Rite Aid….The document containing the Agreement and Plan of Merger weighs in at a hefty 137 pages. Below, I highlight four fun facts about the deal’s timing, its termination fees, and what the companies will do to achieve antitrust approval.

1. The deal must be completed before Halloween 2016.
2. If Rite Aid backs out of the deal, then it owes as much as $370 million to Walgreens Boots Alliance.
3. WBA could owe Rite Aid a termination fee as large as $650 million.
4. To get the deal approved, WBA is willing to dump as many as 1,000 stores.

When the Drug Enforcement Administration announced last year that pharmacies nationwide could accept and destroy customers’ unwanted prescription drugs, experts in substance abuse called it a significant step toward easing the painkiller and heroin epidemic…the response has been insignificant…about 1 percent of American pharmacies have set up disposal programs, with none of those belonging to the two largest chains, CVS and Walgreens, which have balked at the cost and security risks… at least eight states, including New York, have laws that forbid pharmacies to take back controlled substances…D.E.A. has held 10 so-called take-back days — with the latest on Sept. 26 — these have collected 2,400 tons of pills, limited research suggests that the vast majority are non-controlled medications…

Incident is one of at least seven reported at area pharmacies in 24 hours, all involving suspects 18 or younger…At least seven reported robberies or attempted robberies at Indianapolis-area pharmacies in the past 24 hours involved suspects who were 18 or younger, according to police reports…In a robbery attempt at a Northeastside Walgreens, a 12-year-old boy was arrested….Indiana battles No. 1 rank in pharmacy robberies…