Still, deals between drug makers and pharmacy chains are now routine.

A pharmacy chain pays $33.85 for the same bottle, he said.

Having someone in the store writing prescriptions could be a boon for pharmacy chains.

The company also runs about a dozen retail pharmacy chains.

It also set up its own pharmacy chain in the country.

He built the store into a pharmacy chain, selling it six years later.

"In pharmacy chains, the pharmacists are moved around a lot and so continuity is not there," he said.

That is because those large entities are able to obtain price discounts for drugs from pharmacy chains.

A pharmacy chain is often linked together through corporate headquarters with computer networking.

Some big pharmacy chains and drug makers began withdrawing the products.