Not only is Russellville’s Riley-White Drugs & Healthcare now a part of Health Mart, but Health Mart is coming to Russellville.

Health Mart’s Healthy Living Tour bus will be set up at Riley-White on Russellville’s Carrico Park Square this Thursday from 9 a.m. until noon. Those who request them can get a variety of free screenings during that visit. Those on Medicare can get a free flu shot and the vaccine is also available to others participating.

Health Mart is associated with McKessin, the largest distributor of pharmaceuticals and health care equipment.

Donnie Riley, one of the owners of Riley-White, has been on the board of American Pharmacy Services Corporation for nine years and serves as its secretary-treasurer. That board determined Health Mart offers the most services that will benefit the customers of independent pharmacies, such as Riley-White.

According to Health Mart’s website, these are two of the most frequently asked questions when community pharmacies affiliate with their company. These are their answers:

Is my local independent pharmacy now owned by another company? 
No. Health Mart is a network of leading independent pharmacists. The strength of our national Health Mart network makes it easier for your local pharmacist to provide better healthcare for you while still offering the services that matter to you.

How is Health Mart different from other pharmacies? 
We are independent and locally-owned pharmacies. Health Mart offers the kind of personal service, unexpected conveniences, and trusted advice you can only get from an independent pharmacist. As local business owners, we care about our community as well as our patients and provide an unparalleled level of care and counseling. Caring for you and about you is what Health Mart pharmacists do every day.

Jerry White, a partner and pharmacist at Riley-White, says the company has also taken another step by being able to advise customers as to which insurance plans could meet their particular healthcare needs.

“We don’t sell insurance. I want everyone to understand that,” he says, “but we now have the ability to see which insurance plans—especially Medicare supplements—meet the needs of individual customers. Because of the steps we’ve taken, we are now the primary provider for many insurance plans.”

White says having Mark Reynolds in the company’s business office with the expertise he has attained in using the Access Health program makes much of this possible.

Riley-White is 50 years old this year. From a July 2012 article on The LoJo:

On Jan. 1, 1959, Carroll Riley—a graduate of Russellville High School and the University of Kentucky School of Pharmacy—purchased Eagle Drug Company from businessman Charlie Bowles, who had bought it from Ed and Helen Katterjohn. Riley had begun working there the previous summer. It was located on the southeast side of the square.

Jerry White—also a graduate of RHS and UK Pharmacy—had been serving in the Air Force in the medical mobility division, helping put together field hospitals to be used in Vietnam. When White returned home, he bought a half interest in Riley Drugs in 1965; they changed the name to Riley-White Drugs. 

To read more about the history of Riley-White, go to http://www.theloganjournal.com/Stories.aspx?Article=features59