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Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 14, 2000

Easy-to-Understand, Physician-Endorsed Drug Information

Expands Pharmacy Services at Leading Online Drugstore

drugstore.com, inc. (Nasdaq:DSCM) and MICROMEDEX(R)today announced the availability of an online drug interaction checker specifically designed for the consumer. The new tool translates one of the medical community's most respected drug information resources into consumer-friendly language.

The drugstore.com(TM) drug interaction checker enables consumers to privately check whether different prescription drugs, herbal and dietary supplements can cause potentially serious interactions. The checker also allows consumers to search for potential interactions between medications and food, alcohol and tobacco products.

While prescription drugs are safe and effective when used as directed, many can cause adverse side effects when combined with other drugs, vitamins, or herbal supplements. For example, the commonly prescribed blood-thinning drug warfarin (Coumadin) has significant interactions with dozens of other drugs; and, the popular herbal supplement St. John's Wort can reduce the effectiveness of birth control pills and other medicines.

"If people go to more than one physician or more than one pharmacy, the systems for determining interactions may not catch all of their medications," says Philip Hansten, Pharm.D., professor of pharmacy at the University of Washington and author of the widely used professional reference Hansten and Horn's Drug Interactions Analysis and Management. "Tools like this can help them identify potential problems and generate questions for their pharmacist or physician."

The drugstore.com drug interaction checker is written expressly for consumers, providing easy-to-understand information and advice when interactions are found. The new service is based on the Micromedex database that doctors, nurses, and pharmacists recognize as the authoritative source for unbiased, fully referenced healthcare information.

"Much of the health care information online is highly technical, confusing and misleading because it includes instructions for the medical professional, not the patient," said Andy Stergachis, drugstore.com chief pharmacist. "Now, consumers can visit our site anytime and find out, in plain English, whether their new prescription has potentially dangerous interactions with other medicines that they are taking."

The system provides comprehensive information for each interaction including:

The drugstore.com Pharmacy delivers the highest quality professional services and medications at prices lower than most community drugstores.

-- drugstore.com customers pay almost 20 percent less on average for

prescription drugs compared to brick-and-mortar pharmacy prices

for and top-quality generic and brand-name drugs.

-- The drugstore.com Pharmacy offers free standard shipping on all

prescriptions as well as the option to arrange for pick up at any

one of 3,800 Rite-Aid stores.

-- drugstore.com customers are among the first to find out about

safety concerns. Through its one-of-a-kind eMedAlert(TM) program,

drugstore.com pharmacists recently directly contacted more than

10,000 customers who purchased products containing

phenylpropanolamine, the day after the FDA issued its warning.

-- The drugstore.com Pharmacy is fully licensed by all states as

required and certified by the National Association of Boards of

Pharmacy's Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites (VIPPS)

program.

And now, the drugstore.com Pharmacy provides comprehensive, easy-to-understand drug interaction information for the consumer. (See example below for the interaction between the antibiotic Amoxicillin and the birth control pill Ortho Tri-Cyclen.)

"A side-by-side comparison shows that competing services often confuse and alarm consumers, overlook the growing popularity of dietary supplements, and rarely tell people what they need to know to avoid interactions," said Stergachis.

Example

AMOXICILLIN and (Birth Control) ORTHO TRI-CYCLEN (ETHINYL ESTRADIOL) Response to Interaction Query from the drugstore.com drug interaction checker:

Severity: Major

Description: Treatment with both ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES and AMOXICILLIN may result in oral contraceptives not working as well for you. Amoxicillin may interact with a group of medications called oral contraceptives (or birth control pills) decreasing their effectiveness. These medications are often called birth control pills even though they may be used for other reasons as well. Birth control pills include but are not limited to Ortho-Cyclen(R), Ovcon(R), Ortho-Novum(R), Levlen(R), and Demulen(R). If you are not sure if your medication is considered a birth control pill, contact your pharmacist or physician. Being treated with both birth control pills and amoxicillin is not always recommended. However, your physician may decide that treating you with amoxicillin and birth control pills is the best option. If you are taking oral contraceptives for the purpose of birth control, it is recommended that you use an additional form of birth control. If you are taking both amoxicillin and birth control pills and you become pregnant, or suspect you are pregnant, contact your physician. (Source: Micromedex)

Competing Health Information Database's Response to Same Interaction Query:

Medium Interaction between amoxicillin (generic: amoxicillin) and Ortho Tri-Cyclen (generic: ethinyl estradiol-norgestimate)

Penicillins appear to interact with oral contraceptives unpredictably, possibly by reducing the bacterial hydrolysis of estrogens in the gastrointestinal tract and thereby reducing enterohepatic recirculation. Patients may experience breakthrough bleeding and should consider use of alternate methods of birth control while taking penicillins. (Source:DrKoop.com)

About drugstore.com

drugstore.com, inc. (Nasdaq:DSCM) is the leading online drugstore and information site offering A Very Healthy Way to Shop(TM) for health, beauty, wellness, personal care, and pharmacy products. The drugstore.com(TM) online store provides a convenient, private, and informative shopping experience that encourages consumers to purchase products essential to healthy, everyday living. The Web store offers thousands of brand-name personal health care products at competitive prices; a full-service, licensed retail pharmacy; and a wealth of health-related information, buying guides, and other tools designed to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. Consumers can personalize their shopping experiences with shopping lists, e-mail reminders for replenishing regularly used products, and private e-mail access to pharmacists and beauty experts for questions.

Earlier this year, the company acquired Beauty.com, a leading site offering prestige cosmetic products. drugstore.com also has formed strategic relationships with Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN), Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE:RAD)(PSE:RAD), WellPoint Health Networks Inc.(NYSE: WLP) and General Nutrition Companies, Inc. (Nasdaq:GNCI).

drugstore.com, A Very Healthy Way to Shop and eMedAlert are all trademarks of drugstore.com, inc.

About MICROMEDEX

MICROMEDEX knowledge bases are relied upon in over 9,000 facilities in 92 countries. A leader in the industry since 1974, MICROMEDEX provides current, in-depth, evidence-based information on pharmacology, toxicology, emergency and acute care, patient education, and alternative medicine backed by the support of The Thomson Corporation, MICROMEDEX continues to shape the future of information systems by implementing innovative integrated technology strategies. MICROMEDEX is dedicated to delivering the most comprehensive clinical information enterprise wide using the most effective means available including compact discs, intranet, 32-point PC software, and point-of-care integration.

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