Walgreens Offers Medication Preparedness Advice as Hurricane Earl Approaches the East Coast

DEERFIELD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As East Coast residents and vacationers prepare to evacuate areas in the path of Hurricane Earl, Walgreens would like to provide the following tips for assuring prescription needs are met during the storm.

1. If you evacuate, get to a safe location first and refill your medication at a pharmacy there. This allows you to avoid potentially long lines at your local pharmacy, and you won’t needlessly delay your evacuation. Walgreens has more than 7,500 locations nationwide, and all locations can access your patient record, making any Walgreens your neighborhood Walgreens. Patients can find the nearest store by calling 1-800-WALGREENS or going to Walgreens.com.

2. Take a waterproof bag with your current medication - even if the bottle is empty. The information on the bottle label will help the pharmacist refill your medicine once you arrive at your destination. Heat, humidity and sunlight can degrade the effectiveness of medicine, so try to protect it from extreme weather conditions.

3. Keep a written record of your current prescriptions in your valuable papers file. If you’re taking several prescription drugs, it’s an especially good idea to keep a record of your current dosage and doctor’s contact information. Walgreens patients can register online at Walgreens.com and print out this information directly from their patient profile.

Users of web-enabled cell phones can also register for Walgreens mobile applications to conveniently order prescription refills while on the go and easily locate the nearest Walgreens pharmacy. For registration or more information on Walgreens mobile applications, go to www.walgreens.com/gomobile.

Walgreens also is a member of ICERx.org (In Case of Emergency Prescriptions), a secure prescription information network available to pharmacists and doctors during a national emergency. As a member, Walgreens pharmacists can fill prescriptions and access information for hurricane-affected patients even if the patient normally uses another pharmacy.

For the latest information on the status of Walgreens stores in hurricane impacted areas, go to http://news.walgreens.com.

Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2009 sales of $63 billion. The company operates 7,545 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility, long-term care and mail service, along with pharmacy benefit solutions and respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. Walgreens Take Care Health Systems subsidiary is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.