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CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid Corp. has launched wellness+ for diabetes, a free program that offers exclusive resources and savings to people living with diabetes and their caregivers.
The drug store chain said Wednesday that for the diabetes program, an adjunct of its wellness+ customer rewards program, it is teaming up with online health care information portal WebMD.
Customers enrolled in wellness+ for diabetes will have 24×7 online access to a special Rite Aid-sponsored section of WebMD’s Diabetes head2toe online lifestyle management tools. Those include a Personal Diabetes Work Plan, customized for each member, that features a daily glucose tracker, a weekly workout log, recipes and meal planning tips, as well as monthly lifestyle summary reports. Besides health and wellness information about diabetes, the WebMD Diabetes head2toe site has inspirational stories of people who live healthy, balanced lives with diabetes.
"People living with diabetes and their caregivers are often overwhelmed by all the information available to them and are looking for help to make sense of it all," Robert Thompson, executive vice president of pharmacy at Rite Aid, said in a statement. "Our new wellness+ for diabetes program offers unique answers and extends the support Rite Aid pharmacists have long offered. We are excited to offer our diabetes customers and caregivers exclusive online tools together with WebMD’s credible and trusted health information through its Diabetes head2toe program, and to help them live well with diabetes."
All Rite Aid stores also offer other benefits to members of wellness+ for diabetes, including access to informative videos and web pages that can be viewed by scanning a special barcode known as a QR code with a smartphone; educational brochures and additional resources provided by manufacturers of diabetes-related products; exclusive wellness+ for diabetes rewards, such as a $10+UP Reward that can be used on a future Rite Aid purchase for every $50 purchase of diabetes-related products; and a welcome package with over $100 in savings on select diabetes-related products for patients bringing in a new prescription for diabetes medication.
Customers can sign up for wellness+ for diabetes at any Rite Aid store as well as online at riteaid.com/diabetes or WebMD.com/diabeteshead2toe. Wellness+ for diabetes members can also access specially trained pharmacists who can answer diabetes medication questions by going online to Rite Aid’s diabetes web page or by calling a toll-free number.
"WebMD’s reach to more than 100 million unique visitors each month extends Rite Aid’s wellness+ for diabetes services and benefits to consumers who are actively seeking information on how to better manage living with diabetes," stated John Learish, senior vice president of marketing at Rite Aid.
As part of the Rite Aid and WebMD alliance, a survey is being conducted to gain more insight into the impact of diabetes, particularly on women. The poll findings are slated to be released in the coming weeks. "We want to better understand how women and men are affected differently by this disease, barriers to people managing their condition and the ways we can best support people living with diabetes and their caregivers," according to Learish.
In addition, wellness+ for diabetes members get all the benefits of wellness+, such as earning points for free cholesterol or blood glucose screenings, as well as member-only shopping discounts and special prices.
Earlier this month, Rite Aid announced that it has joined the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance (DPCA), an initiative aimed at stemming the epidemic of diabetes, prediabetes and obesity by expanding access to innovative, community-based programs using evidence-based approaches to help prevent and control the disease.
The drug chain said it will support patients enrolled in the DPCA program to help people control their diabetes. That support is available now to program participants at select New York City Rite Aid stores in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx and will be made available at select stores in Washington, D.C., in mid-October.
Rite Aid will provide patient education and support from trained pharmacists to help people with diabetes better control their condition and lower the risk of developing complications from diabetes, such as cardiovascular, kidney and eye disease. Pharmacists in select Rite Aid locations will consult quarterly with enrolled patients to evaluate their success adhering to prescribed diabetes regimens and review patients’ test results for blood pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol.
