PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 2004

Contact: Leslie Bayer, 913.403.5425

Minneapolis, MN—Thrifty White Drug, an employee owned chain of 69 stores serving primarily rural communities in North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Montana, and Iowa, is installing ScriptPro Robotic Prescription Dispensing Systems to fill the growing prescription load and maximize return on investment.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Thrifty White was founded in 1884, making it one of the oldest drugstore chains in America. According to Gary Boehler, Executive Vice President of Pharmacy and Health Care Services, pharmacy accounts for 89 percent of its sales.

“Pharmacy is the focus of our business,” said Boehler. “Every decision we make must positively impact our pharmacies.”

The chain began evaluating robotic dispensing in 1999 for several reasons, according to Boehler. Prescription volumes in Thrifty White stores were increasing, and they were faced with the need to add part-time pharmacists to keep up. Employee retention at Thrifty White is very high, with turnover less than half the national average. However, it was difficult to find qualified part-time staff in rural areas, and management decided to consider robotics as an alternative.

The management team evaluated pharmacy automation technology and decided ScriptPro was ahead of the competition in system design, reliability and customer support. They determined that ScriptPro technology would give them the boost to handle the current prescription load and prepare the stores for future growth.

“When I calculated the cost of a part-time pharmacist and the cost of ScriptPro's robot, automation was clearly the way to go. Since then, salaries for pharmacy staff have increased,” said Boehler. “The hourly cost of a fully supported robot is about one-fourth of the hourly cost of a pharmacist. When we implement a ScriptPro robot instead of adding a part-time pharmacist, we get a 4 to 1 payback.”

Thrifty White pharmacists should be talking to patients, not counting pills. According to Boehler, “Our goal is to get the pharmacist as far removed from redundant tasks as possible. Thrifty White pharmacists verify and check prescriptions and counsel patients. ScriptPro robots have allowed us to do that.” To date, Thrifty White has installed 12 ScriptPro robots, with several more in the planning stages.

Thrifty White continues to add ScriptPro robots as needed, since the ROI is quick and substantial. Boehler adds that ScriptPro’s service levels have been outstanding. Issues are resolved immediately any time of day or night. “ScriptPro takes care of its equipment and is very customer oriented. We can depend on these machines.”

ScriptPro, located in Mission, Kansas, has installed thousands of automated prescription dispensing systems worldwide.

ABOUT SCRIPTPRO: ScriptPro develops and provides state-of-the-art prescription fulfillment solutions for community, ambulatory, and managed care pharmacies. ScriptPro is dedicated to helping pharmacies lower operating costs, reduce dispensing errors and increase customer service. ScriptPro technology reduces manual dispensing tasks, allowing pharmacists to assume more active roles in health care management.

For more information about ScriptPro, contact Leslie Bayer at 913.403.5425 or visit us at www.scriptpro.com.