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Claritin hot item for sniffling shoplifters
CHICAGO, Illinois (Reuters) -- Your local pharmacist is on the lookout for sniffling shoplifters. Pharmacies around the country are eyeing suspicious allergy sufferers who may shoplift over-the-counter versions of Schering-Plough Corp.'s Claritin, the popular allergy remedy newly available on drugstore shelves. "It does fit the theft profile because it's expensive relative to other over-the-counter drugs," said Crystal Wright, spokeswoman for the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, representing about 35,000 U.S. drug stores, including the big chains Rite Aide Corp. and Walgreen Co. The nonprescription form of the popular allergy remedy is expected to save employers and health insurers hundreds of millions of dollars in prescription drug costs. Schering-Plough took in about $3 billion yearly in revenue when it sold the drug in prescription form. The company blamed a 19 percent drop in fourth quarter profit on a huge decline in Claritin sales. Yet consumers are in the opposite predicament. They now typically shell out between $6 and $12 for a 10-day supply, depending on the brand. That's compared with an average $5 or $10 co-payment for 30 days' worth that patients paid when health insurance covered most of the tab. Cycles of theftTheft of Claritin follows the path of similar products, like Monistat, a yeast infection cream that went from prescription only to over-the-counter several years ago, Wright said. "It has to do with cost and size," Wright said. "And if they can easily swipe it and it's in demand." Over-the-counter Claritin hit the store shelves in early December, following a petition by health insurer WellPoint Health Networks Inc. to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. WellPoint and other HMOs, backed by big employers reeling from crippling health care costs, pushed the FDA to allow the drug to be sold over the counter. Now, local Walgreens and Osco pharmacies, owned by Albertson's Inc., in downtown Chicago said they moved the over-the-counter Claritin behind the counter to avert theft. "I've chased some people out with baskets of Claritin," said Mike DiBlasi, manager of an Osco in Chicago's financial district. "The majority of it is behind the counter," now, he said. Schering-Plough and Wyeth are among the drugmakers who market an over-the-counter version of Claritin, and Andrx Corp. has plans in the works for its own version. Copyright 2003 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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