CHICAGO - Supermarkets have lost share in prescription and health care sales since the start of the Medicare Part D benefit in January, according to a new study from Information Resources Inc. here.
With millions of seniors gaining prescription insurance for the first time through Medicare Part D, prescription costs are no longer as critical a driver of store selection, the study said.
With the new benefit, the average annual savings per person amount to $1,100, according to the study. However, aggressive supercenter and drug store advertising, as well as increased use of mail order, have pushed supermarket sales down.
During the four-month period following the benefit's Jan. 1 start date, supermarkets lost 2.2 dollar share points in prescription transactions and 1.1 points in over-the-counter health care categories, according to the study.
For the same period, drug stores gained 1.1 share points in prescription and 1.4 in OTC; supercenters gained 1.8 and 1.3 points in prescription and OTC, respectively; and mail order prescription sales went up 1.7 points, the study said.
"Supermarkets tried to address Medicare Part D by advising the customers they already had, rather than trying to bring people in with new prescriptions," said Jim Wisner, president, Wisner Marketing Group, Libertyville, Ill.
