Kmart steps up Rx rewards
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. —Kmart has launched a year-end campaign to drive more customer traffic to its 1,030 in-store pharmacies and encourage consumers to consolidate all their prescription and health needs within its stores.
To that end, the subsidiary of Sears Holdings is aggressively marketing a new savings promotion and a menu of healthcare services. The cornerstone of that effort is a new rewards program to encourage customers to switch all of their prescriptions to one of its pharmacies.
Via the new promotion, Kmart Pharmacy is offering a Kmart gift card of up to $25, valid until Dec. 31, for each prescription transferred, with a limit of four prescriptions and $100 per person. Script transfer forms are available at all registers, the company said.
Besides the new savings incentive—one of the most aggressive in recent memory—Kmart’s pharmacy operation also has stepped up its promotion of health-and-wellness services. Among them:
A full-scale seasonal flu vaccination program at participating Kmart pharmacies. Immunizations are administered by trained Kmart pharmacists, with costs varying by location and health plan—and free of charge to patients covered by Medicare Part B.
A broad-based ability to supply Medicare Part B beneficiaries with health and diabetic supplies, and to handle the billing for those services. “Kmart Pharmacy recently received accreditation as…an accredited retailer recognized to dispense diabetes supplies, plus prescriptions and other forms of healthcare services, for Medicare patients,” noted the company on Oct. 23. “Such accreditation also assures Medicare and other payers that the highest levels of quality are practiced within all areas of Kmart pharmacies, from business operations to patient-care techniques.”
An online Medicare Part D comparison tool to help beneficiaries find the best Part D prescription plan to meet their needs.
A menu of generic drug savings programs, ranging from a $5 offering on more than 100 me-too medications to a $25 price point for more than 50 women’s wellness drugs. The list of $25 women’s prescription medications includes prenatal vitamins and drugs for skin care, osteoporosis, fertility, hormone replacement therapy and oral contraception.
An ongoing series of health screenings and patient education events.
An expanding offering of large-scale fitness products, including such items as treadmills and elliptical training machines.
Caregivers Marketplace, an ongoing offering to help caregivers lower health costs with cash-back rebates on health and personal-care products.
Jack Hellyer, senior pharmacist at Kmart’s Penn Plaza location in New York, summed up the chain’s determination to stake out a broader claim to the nation’s pharmacy and front-line healthcare marketplace. “When I meet with customers, whether they’ve been coming here a long time or are new to Kmart…I make sure we talk about all the medications and supplements they take and their diet to help identify any possible interactions,” Hellyer said. “Keeping that line of communication open is key, especially since we’re in the height of flu season, and many customers aren’t aware that certain medications can interact with or affect flu vaccines.”