Target expanded
its $4 generic-drug program to all of its U.S. pharmacies
on Monday, not just in states where it has
been matching a plan offered by rival Wal-Mart.
Target said all
of its 1,287 pharmacies across the United States would
now offer some generic drugs at $4 for a 30-day supply. The
discount retailer had previously matched the list of
drugs being sold for $4 at Wal-Mart but only in states
where Wal-Mart was offering the plan.
Now Target is
selling $4 generic drugs in nine states where Wal-Mart has
not yet rolled out its program: California, Colorado,
Connecticut, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana,
Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. Wal-Mart also
has not yet introduced its program in Hawaii, North Dakota,
or Wyoming, but Target does not sell drugs in those states.
Target also said
that it is charging more for certain drugs--such as
cholesterol drugs lovastatin and pravastatin--and some
dosages of other drugs in 10 states due to state law.
Wal-Mart, the
world's largest retailer, started selling certain generic
drugs for $4 per prescription in Florida in September. Since
then, Wal-Mart has brought the $4 drugs to 37 more
states and said it plans to extend the plan to
additional states as fast as it can.
Wal-Mart has also
added more drugs to its list, such as pravastatin, a
generic form of Bristol-Myers Squibb's cholesterol drug
Pravachol.
The cut-price
drugs are now available in 3,009 Wal-Mart pharmacies.
Wal-Mart has about 3,960 U.S. stores.
When Wal-Mart
announced the $4 plan in September, it drove down shares of
generic-drug makers, pharmacy-benefit managers, and
drugstore chains such as Walgreens and CVS.
The drugstore
companies and analysts have said they see little threat
from Wal-Mart's plan, noting that cash
prescriptions--or those customers who don't have
insurance to help defray the cost of
prescriptions--account for only a small portion
of their profits.
Shares of
Minneapolis-based Target, which operates 1,494 stores in 47
U.S. states, was up 4 cents to $58.26 on the New York Stock
Exchange, while shares of Wal-Mart rose 48 cents to
$47.98.
Target has
pharmacies in 45 U.S. states. It does not operate pharmacies
at its stores in North Dakota or Wyoming and does not have
any stores in Alaska, Hawaii, or Vermont, a
spokeswoman said. (Reuters)