3 BILLION RX ORDERS TO BE FILLED THIS YEAR

NEW YORK - Americans are delving deeper than ever into their medicine
chests, with nearly 3 billion prescriptions expected to be filled this
year, according to a pharmacy trade group.

Consumers will buy an estimated 2.97 billion prescriptions this year,
9 percent more than the 2.73 billion they picked up last year, the
National Association of Chain Drug Stores said in a report Sunday.

Prescription sales could jump to 4 billion before 2005, said Robert W.
Hanna, the group's interim president and chief executive.

Pharmacists, drug makers and consumer groups attribute the rise to an
aging population, increased advertising and an expanding array of
medicines that target "lifestyle" ailments such as insomnia.

'Absolutely Deluged'

Among new drugs sold this year are American Home Products' Sonata
sleeping pill, a Glaxo Wellcome influenza fighter called Relenza, the
Hoffman La Roche fat-blocker Xenical, and Plan B, a "morning-after"
anti-pregnancy pill to be distributed by the Women's Capital Corp.

Community pharmacies account for 63 percent of prescription drug sales
in dollar terms — a projected $76.6 billion this year. Prescription
drugs also are sold at nursing homes, hospitals, prisons and via mailorder.

"We've been absolutely deluged," said Lowell McNichol, who mans the
Safeway drug counter in Petaluma, Calif. "We have drugs available now
for things we couldn't treat five, 10, 15 years ago. So we use them."

Among the fastest-selling new drugs are so-called cox-2 inhibitors, a
new class of painkillers often referred to as "super-aspirins."

Antidepressants Top Sellers

Antidepressants are among the top-selling drugs, with 17 percent more
prescriptions this June than in June 1998, according to NDC Health
Information Services, which tracks drug sales. Nearly one out of every
three anti-depressants sold is Eli Lilly & Co.'s Prozac, one of the
oldest drugs of its class.