Price Chopper Unveils “Diabetes Advantedge” Program to Help Customers Manage Diabetes with Medication, Diet and Lifestyle

(SCHENECTADY) - Price Chopper has launched a comprehensive integrated diabetes management program -- Diabetes AdvantEdge - which will give diabetes patients more access to medication, increased support and information as well as educational opportunities on nutrition, healthy food choices, and diabetes management.

"Diabetes patients will now have a single destination for their prescriptions, nutritional information and everything else they might need to help them manage their diabetes. As health professionals, nutrition specialists and providers of life-sustaining products, Price Chopper is both equipped and committed to turning the tide on diabetes," said Vincent Mainella, the chain's Vice President of Pharmacy.

"Diabetes has reached a near epidemic level in our country and a lot of it has to do with learning how to take care of ourselves," said Maureen Murphy, Price Chopper's Manager of Consumer Trends, Nutrition and Lifestyles. "Price Chopper has everything customers need to help them in managing diabetes - the best in fresh produce, seafood, meat and deli items, sugar substitutes, high fiber, sugar free, lighter and lower calorie foods, blood testing supplies, over-the-counter and prescription medications, as well as access to our team of registered dietitians, online diabetes-appropriate recipes and health information."

The cornerstone of the Diabetes AdvantEdge program is its provision of free diabetes medications, such as metformin, glipizide and glyburide, which are those most commonly prescribed to patients managing diabetes. Patients filling these prescriptions will also receive free lancets and lancing devices to assist with the monitoring of their blood sugar. Price Chopper pharmacists, in their 1-on-1 consultations, will take a more active role encouraging and educating patients on the use of blood sugar recording logs

as tools to enhance the communication of progress with their physicians.

In addition, Diabetes AdvantEdge offers many other valuable components:

Auto-enrollment in the Refill AdvantEdge program. The Refill AdvantEdge program helps patients remain compliant in taking their medications without interruption, an essential element in managing diabetes. Once the patient enrolls, medications will be automatically refilled and available at the pharmacy for pick-up each month.

Access to diabetes friendly recipes from Eating Well magazine and a diabetes health center online.

Access to a trained nutritionist available for questions about eating and recipes. Customers can "Ask the Nutritionist" any questions they might have by making a phone call to Price Chopper's toll free line (1-800-666-7667,option 2). This service is also available by visiting the Price Chopper website at www.PriceChopper.com.

Access to NuVal, the revolutionary nutritional scoring system that assigns a score from 1-100 - the higher the score, the higher the nutrition - on virtually every item in the store. This comprehensive, easy-to-use system is designed to help people make better food choices for themselves and their families.

Coupons and promotions for healthy items throughout the store and e-mail updates about events such as food tours, cooking classes and diabetes topics.

Price Chopper customers will have regular opportunities to meet with Price Chopper's team of pharmacists as a resource for diabetes management. Registered dieticians will also be available to educate and inform about diabetes-friendly foods and recipes throughout the Price Chopper store, on the chain's website and in their social media outreach.

"I come in contact with many people who don't understand the devastation of diabetes as well as families who need help managing the day to day choices that need to be made when living with this disease," said Beverly Kennedy, Executive Director of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. "JDRF is pleased to count Price Chopper as a partner, and we are thrilled by their introduction of Diabetes AdvantEdge, which will not only help those living with diabetes, but will also further educate the general public about the importance of living a healthy lifestyle. Congratulations to Price Chopper for providing this much needed service to the community," she added.

In conjunction with the Diabetes AdvantEdge program, Price Chopper Pharmacies are also expanding an existing program that provides free antibiotics to Price Chopper customers with qualified prescriptions. This program, which was piloted in the chain's Connecticut stores, will now be available in all of the chain's 70 pharmacies.