Walgreens to participate in Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program

DEERFIELD - Walgreens will participate in the U.S. Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program, through an initial $20 million grant awarded to The Scripps Research Institute by the National Institutes of Health.

The company will help support patient enrollment and participation in the program through its daily interactions with more than 8 million customers in stores, online and through its mobile app. The award will total almost $120 million over five years and is part of President Obama's Precision Medicine Initiative, one of the most ambitious medical research programs in the history of American medicine aimed at revolutionizing how researchers, providers and research participants work together to develop individualized care.

With the funding award, Walgreens will offer customers enrollment in the PMI Cohort Program at its stores, at Walgreens Healthcare Clinics, online through Walgreens.com and through the Walgreens mobile app. For those who enroll, Walgreens also can schedule their initial appointment for the program.

"As a trusted health care resource to the millions of customers and patients we see every day, Walgreens will help launch this important program that can lead to delivering the right treatments at the right time to help Americans live longer, happier and healthier lives," said Alex Gourlay, co-chief operating officer of Walgreens Boots Alliance.

The PMI Cohort Program is a landmark research effort that aims to engage 1 million or more U.S. participants to improve the ability of preventing and treating disease based on individual differences in lifestyle, environment and genetics. Participants will share their health history and status, genomic and other biological information, and grant access to their clinical data from electronic health records.

In addition, mobile health devices and apps will provide lifestyle data and environmental exposures in real time. The knowledge gained from the program is expected to extend successes of precision medicine in some cancers to many other diseases and also increase an individual's chances of remaining healthy throughout life.