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GREER -- Wanda Hawkins, a Greer resident, held a list of Wal-Mart's new $4 generic prescriptions in her hand as she wandered through the store's pharmacy department.

"It's a good thing," she said of the company's decision to sell about 300 generic drugs for $4 a prescription.

The company announced that its 69 pharmacies in South Carolina began participating in the $4 generic drug program Thursday. The company also announced Thursday that it is adding 17 more prescriptions to the program.

Al Dominguez, Wal-Mart director of pharmacy administration, said, "Any person can come to Wal-Mart and can get over 300 drugs in 26 therapeutic categories. We are proud to be part of the solution."

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Bi-Lo/Bruno's, based in Mauldin, said the supermarket's 173 pharmacies have a policy of matching prices on prescription medications. That means its pharmacies would honor Wal-Mart's program prices, said Curtis Hartin, the company's pharmacy director.

"This is not new for us," he said.

Kmart offers a 90-day generic program, which allows consumers to buy three months of medication for $15. The program began in May and is in effect at all of the company's 1,100 pharmacies.

While Wal-Mart's program appears to be a cost-saver at first glance, Kmart's 90-day program is a better value and time saver for customers, allowing them to return to the store every three months instead of every 30 days, said Mark Doerr, vice president for Kmart Pharmacy.

"The $15 cost spread over three months ultimately means that customers are paying $5 a month for refills but saving money on gas and valuable time associated with frequent trips to the pharmacy."

South Carolina joined 11 other states Thursday in the program. It was launched in Florida in September and is now available in 3,009 pharmacies in 38 states. Since the program began, 2.1 million new prescriptions have been filled.

Gov. Mark Sanford joined Wal-Mart officials and employees in kicking off the program.

"This announcement of $4 prescription drugs is significant," he said. "It's about the cost of health care in South Carolina. It's about the cost of health care in America.

"Affordability is one of the key issues we face when it comes to health care in South Carolina and elsewhere."

Health-care problems won't be solved with a single silver bullet but with "lots of little silver bullets," he said.

State Sen. Jim Ritchie, R-Spartanburg, also welcomed the program, saying, "The cost of health care is no secret. What Wal-Mart is doing today will make South Carolina more competitive in the marketplace."

This program will help the Upstate by lowering insurance rates, allowing companies to create more jobs and helping those on fixed incomes afford their medicine.

Nellie Burns, who has a prescription plan, isn't exactly sure how the new program might affect her.

The Greer resident said that even with her plan, her medicine "is still expensive."

However, she expects the program to be a big help to her sister, who has medical problems requiring expensive medications.

Pat and Kenneth Young also are excited about the program. She retired about a year ago and he is disabled, requiring lifesaving medications. Young is spending enough on his medications that he expects to hit the "gap" where he is required to pay for the total cost of prescriptions this month.

"I know people it's taking food off their table," Pat Young said.

"They've hit a home run with this," her husband said.

Dominguez said the program means "people can shop on price," something not easily possible in the pharmaceutical field.

Wal-Mart is not losing money on the program, he said. It is applying its business model of buying in bulk and using a streamlined distribution system to pass value on to the consumer.

"We're selling it (the $4 drugs) for a profit," he said. "It's not a loss-leader."

He said the company continually looks at generic drugs to find more that can be added to the $4 list. Wal-Mart also is looking at brand-name drugs, he said, to see if a similar program could be possible.

Generic medicines generally cost between 30 percent and 60 percent less than equivalent brand-name products, according to Wal-Mart. The company estimates that its list of $4 generic prescriptions represents more than one in four of the prescriptions currently dispensed in its pharmacies nationwide.

The $4 prescriptions currently are not available by mail order but are available online or by telephone for refills for in-person pickup.

Dominguez said he considers Wal-Mart a leader in the low-price movement and expects it to lead the move to lower drug prices.