Top Retailers

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT —Sam's Club has made a major commitment to health and wellness, and is hosting screening events every month of the year. January was New Year, New You. This month it's heart health. Next month it's allergy screenings. In June it's men's health, which includes some pretty expensive PSA tests. Why? Sam's wants its members to know it's serious about health and wellness, and knows that these events are a good way to convert members into patients.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Friday announced it will publish a digital edition of its weekly advertising circular that will offer additional items through Walgreens.com and the company's mobile applications.

The Sunday circular — read by more than 50 million consumers, according to Walgreens — also will get a new look and feel, designed to improve the shopping experience.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — The regulatory review of the Express Scripts-Medco merger now is in its final stages, and with the clock ticking down to that 30-day deadline, you can expect a full court-press from retail pharmacy interests looking to block the deal. The time for the three-point finesse shots from the corners of the court has passed, it's now time to charge the net and jam the message home; an Express Scripts-Medco merger is bad both for the retail pharmacy business and for consumers. However, it just might be good for CVS Caremark.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — Recognizing that cardiovascular disease affects about 80 million people in the United States and is the No. 1 killer of Americans, CVS/pharmacy announced on Thursday that it is providing several free services, educational information and special product offers during February's American Heart Month.

MINNETONKA, Minn. — Another retailer has joined the UnitedHealth Group's Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance, an initiative designed to help address the growing epidemic of prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — A retail pharmacy chain's efforts to immunize customers have won recognition from an organization of the country's pharmacists.

Rite Aid won the American Pharmacists Association's Immunization Champion Award in the national corporation and institution category, the chain said Thursday.

NEW YORK — The National Association for Female Executives on Wednesday released its list of the "Top 50 Companies for Executive Women."

General Mills, Johnson & Johnson and Procter & Gamble were all listed in the top 10 on that list. Other notable supplier and retail companies included Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Cardinal Health, Colgate-Palmolive, Eli Lilly, Kraft Foods, Merck and Walmart.

DENVER — MusclePharm on Thursday announced its MMA Elite supplements powered by MusclePharm now are available in select Walmart stores. With the new partnership between MMA Elite — a mixed-martials arts brand licensed by Ultimate Brand Management — and MusclePharm, the new supplement line will be released in the Las Vegas area first and will then spread nationwide.

The first two products to be featured are Perform Elite, a pre-workout product, and Recover Elite, a post-workout supplement, at a suggested retail price of $19.97 each.