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Wal-Mart Targets Younger Demo With Latest Rx Cuts

Wal-Mart yesterday added seven new compounds to the list of drugs it sells for $4 that may give a glimpse of the future at its pharmacies. The company seems to be reaching out to a younger and broader clientele as it tries to expand its presence in the $250 billion retail drug market beyond its current share of 5% to 6%.

Many of the drugs previously on the Wal-Mart plan were heart, high blood pressure and diabetes drugs commonly used by older people. But now it is adding methylphenidate -- a drug for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder that is commonly used for school-age children -- to its $4 list. It also will start selling generic versions of two popular birth control pills for $9 a month. A fertility drug, clomiphene, will also be available for $9, Wal-Mart says.

"They've gotten a bit more aggressive in creating a second tier," says Ronny Gal, who follows the generic drug industry for Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. He predicts that the company might add more drugs to the $9 list and, ultimately create a third--higher-priced--tier.

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