Letters | Wal-Mart's $4 drug plan

ACCESS to affordable prescription drugs is an issue that is increasingly plaguing seniors and working families. As a result, Wal-Mart has made 331 generic prescriptions available to customers for only $4 a prescription for up to a 30-day supply at commonly prescribed dosages.

The program is now available at all 3,810 Wal-Mart and Sam's Club pharmacies, including 141 in Pennsylvania. Certain restrictions apply in Pennsylvania due to state laws, but 275 generic drugs are still available for $4, while 56 others will be offered for just $9 per prescription.

Wal-Mart has continued to try to cut prescription costs while following all state laws, but for all the accolades the program has garnered over the past several months, a handful of our agenda-driven critics have attempted to criticize our $4 generic program through misinformation.

Some dismiss the program as "a marketing ploy." But it provides a real solution for millions of uninsured Americans who avoid filling prescriptions they otherwise couldn't afford.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the 49 states where Wal-Mart has rolled out its $4 prescription generic-drug program are home to nearly 46 million uninsured residents, including more than 1 million in Pennsylvania.

Our program provides immediate relief to those who can't afford their medication, who are neglecting their health and even some who have to choose between putting food on the table and buying their prescriptions. In addition to the uninsured, the program helps alleviate a major challenge for seniors who have fallen into the "doughnut hole" coverage gap in their Medicare Part D prescription drug plans.

Since we announced our $4 generic program, several Pennsylvania competitors have joined us in bringing more affordable medicines to seniors, working families and the uninsured. This is the start of real change in the way prescription drugs are priced in the marketplace.

Hank Mullany, President

Wal-Mart Stores

Northeast Division