Everyone knows the prescription drug market is not only competitive, but is often highly scrutinized due to healthcare and insurance policies. Publix Super Markets is putting all of that to rest, offering free 14-day supplies of seven common antibiotics at its 684 pharmacies in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee.
This is an interesting reply to Wal-Mart, Costco, Walgreen’s, and CVS’s low-cost and discount programs on drugs in recent months. Publix is taking things a step further, however, by not only providing customers with free supplies of 14-day antibiotics, but by not limiting the number of prescriptions customers can fill for free. According to a company release, all the customer needs is a prescription, and can participate regardless of their insurance provider.
The antibiotics eligible for this promotion are Amoxicillin, Cephalexin, Sulfamethoxazole/Trimethoprim, Ciprofloxacin, Penicillin VK, Ampicillin and Erythromycin.
Dwaine Stevens, Publix media and community relations manager, mentioned in a press release that the company is solely concerned with the wellness of the customer, and feels this recent promotion should prove that.
“We are always striving to provide our customer with service and value,” Stevens said. “With healthcare and prescription costs on the rise, our free prescription drug program will reinforce our commitment to the total health and wellness of our customers and their families.”
Publix is privately owned by more than 58,000 stockholders and 84,000 participants of its Employee Stock Ownership Plan. Since the stock is not traded on publicly on a stock exchange it doesn’t have a ticker symbol. The market price is determined by its board of directors, based upon appraisals prepared by an independent source.
During designated offering periods, the company’s common stock is made available for sale to eligible active employees and non-employee members of its board of directors.
The current stock price of Publix, as of August 1, 2007, is $20.90 per share.
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