Medco Health Solutions Inc., the country's largest mail-order pharmacy, said it lost a major contract to provide prescription drugs through the mail to federal employees.
The contract's winner was Caremark Rx Inc., Nashville, Tenn., a lesser-known company which last week received Federal Trade Commission clearance to acquire another pharmacy-benefits manager, AdvancePCS of Irving, Texas.
The federal-employees contract, which expires at year's end, has been a major source of business for Medco, accounting for about 10 million prescriptions last year out of around 80 million mail-order prescriptions that Medco filled. About 3.9 million federal employees and retirees have the option to use Medco's mail facilities under the contract. Medco, of Franklin Lakes, N.J., had the contract for more than 15 years. Medco's stock sank on the news.
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