By Drew Stone, The Lebanon Reporter
Whitestown - After searching for several months and through 48 states, Medco has chosen Boone County to host its largest facility.
Medco Health Solutions will move into the Allpoints at Anson development in Whitestown. Medco's ground-breaking is expected by spring 2008 and the facility will be operational by early 2009, officials said.
Medco was a leading pharmacy benefit manager in the country in 2006. Its total net revenues for the year totaled more than $42 billion.
The 318,000-square-foot pharmacy, slated to open early in 2009, will cover an area equivalent to six and a half football fields, bringing approximately 1,300 jobs to the state by its anticipated peak operation in 2012.
Medco intends to provide competitive salaries and a comprehensive employee benefit package for a wide range of positions, including electrical and mechanical technicians, managers, warehouse specialists and more than 100 pharmacists, among other types of jobs. Hiring is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2008, with the majority of the hiring expected in 2010 and 2011.
Excitement and satisfaction were the two sentiments shared by company and community leaders.
"In all seriousness - wow; what a great project for not just Boone County, but for the entire state of Indiana," Boone County Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Kristie McKillip said. "Had it not been for Boone County officials, Whitestown officials and key community leaders, this would not have happened."
Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman joined executives from Duke Realty Corp. and Medco Tuesday, Dec. 18, as they announced the company's plans to build the "world's largest and most advanced automated pharmacy in central Indiana," filling a growing nationwide demand for lower-cost medicines.
Once Medco narrowed its search to Indiana, either Boone, Hendricks or Johnson county was going to be chosen as the site for the facility. And while Skillman said she is happy for Boone County, the fact that no matter what, Medco was going to choose Indiana was a tremendous victory for the state in its ongoing mission to expand.
"We love insourcing talent," Skillman said. "This is such an exciting day for Boone County."
Anson Location Medco Vice President and General Manager Rich Jones said the company chose the Anson site and Boone County because of its location to Interstate 65, the space already made available and sense of community and friendship the county provided.
"We're delighted to bring our technology to Anson and Boone County," Jones said.
Medco selected central Indiana as the home of its new facility, capping a year-long selection process that covered 48 states. Headquartered in Franklin Lakes, N.J., Medco will invest more than $140 million to develop a next-generation mail-order facility that will employ pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, engineering technology, pharmacy support and management positions to dispense more than 1 million prescriptions a week at peak operation.
Officials said the automated pharmacy uses the most advanced technologies and will deliver the highest level of prescription drug dispensing accuracy in the pharmacy industry.