Celebrity Chef Sam Talbot Gets on Board for Diabetes Testing

MILPITAS, Calif., Oct. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- LifeScan, Inc., the maker of OneTouch® Brand Blood Glucose Monitoring Systems, has teamed up with Rite Aid to launch the Rite Track Diabetes Tour. Beginning on November 1, the start of American Diabetes Month, a mobile bus will travel to various Rite Aid pharmacies in eight cities in the Northeast to provide complimentary on-site blood glucose and A1c testing, educational materials and free product samples and offers for people with diabetes, or those at risk.  There are nearly 26 million Americans who have diabetes, seven million of whom remain undiagnosed.

To kick off the Rite Track Diabetes Tour, celebrity chef Sam Talbot (1), who has type 1 diabetes, will be at the first stop, on November 1, at the Rite Aid pharmacy at 301 West 50th St. in New York City, from 11a.m. – 3 p.m.  Talbot, executive chef at New York's Imperial No. Nine and Montauk's Surf Lodge, recently joined with the makers of OneTouch® Brand Meters to help people learn to manage their diabetes while living life without limits.

At the New York event, Talbot will discuss his own diabetes story and give away signed copies of his newly published cookbook, The Sweet Life:  Diabetes Without Boundaries (Rodale, October 25, 2011).

In New York and in each city along the Rite Track Diabetes Tour, attendees can step into the bus to meet one-on-one with a registered nurse for complimentary blood glucose and A1c testing.  Individuals can discuss their results with a Rite Aid pharmacist and learn more about diabetes and how to help manage the condition.

"We're pleased to be working with the makers of OneTouch® Products to bring the Rite Track Diabetes Tour directly to the people in the communities we serve," said Robert Thompson, Rite Aid Executive Vice President of Pharmacy.  "As one of the most accessible healthcare professionals, we want people living with diabetes to know their Rite Aid pharmacist can help them successfully manage and live well with diabetes."

Current stops for the Rite Track Diabetes Tour include New York, Boston, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Washington, D.C., and Norfolk.  A complete schedule of locations and dates is attached and also available at www.OneTouch.com/RiteTrackTour.

About LifeScan:  LifeScan is the leading blood glucose monitoring company in the U.S.  More than 5 million people in the U.S. depend on LifeScan's OneTouch® Brand Products for simple testing and accurate results to help them manage their diabetes.  OneTouch is the most recommended brand of meters by healthcare professionals in the U.S., including endocrinologists, primary care physicians and diabetes educators.  97% of patients, including those with Medicare, are insured for OneTouch Brand Products according to MediMedia Formulary Compass, March 2011 and CMS Medicare Part B enrollment.  For more information on diabetes care and OneTouch Products and services, visit www.OneTouch.com.

(1) Sam Talbot is compensated for his services as a consultant to LifeScan, Inc.

SOURCE LifeScan, Inc.