Retail Clinics

DEERFIELD, Ill. Walgreens has teamed up with “The Dr. Oz Show” to educate the public about the importance of flu prevention.

DALLAS A new study published in Circulation Research, a journal of the American Heart Association, found that blood levels of some ribonucleic acids — known as microRNAs — vary among those with Type 2 diabetes or those who develop the disease, compared with healthy people.

MicroRNA comprises shorter molecular chains than so-called messenger RNA, which takes the genetic information contained within the DNA and allows it to be turned into proteins with various functions, and previously has been linked to numerous diseases, including diabetes.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. California health officials and healthcare professionals are urging Californians to get vaccinated, as the state is on pace for the worst epidemic of pertussis, more commonly known as whooping cough, in more than 50 years. The disease already has claimed the lives of nine infants in the state.

WASHINGTON Milk drinkers are more likely to lose weight than those who skip drinking milk when on a diet, a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggested.

SALT LAKE CITY Walgreens is teaming up with the Muscular Dystrophy Association to administer flu shots to those who need them most, according to published reports.

The MDA is handing out vouchers for free flu shots at Walgreens to those affected by muscular dystrophy and related diseases, according to ABC4News in Salt Lake City.

Voucher requests can be submitted here.

NEW YORK Against a backdrop of continued economic uncertainty, employer healthcare costs for active employees are projected to rise 8.2% after plan changes to an average annual cost of $10,730 in 2011, according to a recent survey of 466 large and midsize employers conducted by Towers Watson.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. Big Y Foods and Western New England College School of Pharmacy have teamed up to develop a faculty pharmacist-run, patient-centered consultation and wellness center inside the Big Y World Class Market here.

The facility is the first one to be located in a supermarket. Patients will be able to make an appointment with a pharmacist who will work with the individual and his or her physician to optimize that individual's care. The grand opening event took place on Sept. 10.

WASHINGTON A pair of Food and Drug Administration advisory committees on Tuesday evening recommended that the FDA not place greater sales restrictions on the sale of dextromethorphan by placing the ingredient on the controlled substances schedule. The panel of FDA advisers voted to not schedule DXM by a vote of 15-9.