When Purdue Pharma introduced its pain killer OxyContin to the market back in 1997 the drug was hailed as a savior for seriously ill patients. Unfortunately, what makes the drug so effective also makes it highly addictive, and easily abused. Purdue Pharma has taken steps recently to help prevent abuse, and today the FDA announced that the changes do offer some "limited" advantages over the original pill.

The drug is definitely effective when used properly by severely ill patients dealing with intense pain. It was designed to give patients a steady does of the pain killer over a 12-hour period.

The cognitive dissonance confronting people who hate Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) but lament the cost of prescription drugs is growing stronger.

In a press release on Monday, the retailer announced that "Beginning today, Wal-Mart, Neighborhood Market and Sam's Club pharmacies will fill prescriptions for up to 350 generic medications at $10 for a 90-day supply." Wal-Mart is also adding adding $9 generic prescriptions for up to a 30-day supplies for drugs treating osteoporosis, breast cancer, menopause and hormone deficiency, in addition to a new "$4 OTC offering," consisting of more than 1,000 products available without a prescription priced at $4 or less.

According to Wal-Mart, roughly "95 percent of the prescriptions written in the majority of therapeutic categories are included in the $4 Prescription Program." In the less than three years since it launched its cheap prescription drugs initiative, Wal-Mart estimated that it has saved consumers over $1 billion on health care.

But wait, there's more! At 7:26 PM EDT, Target (NYSE: TGT) responded with a press release stating that "As part of its ongoing commitment to provide exceptional value to guests and consistent with prior practices, Target will reduce prices on its prescription and over-the-counter drug offerings, remaining competitively priced with Wal*Mart."

Like most price wars, this one looks to turn out well for cash-strapped consumers.

But a word to the wise: part of the reason Wal-Mart and Target are doing this is that they want you to wander around and shop while you wait for your medication. So if you use a big-box store's pharmacy, bring a book or magazine and pull up a chair -- the savings will be nullified if you walk out of there with a $4 prescription and $30 worth of crap you don't need.

I've probably been unjustly hard on Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the past. It's not that I don't like them, it's more a case of not liking some of the moves they've made as a corporation. The one thing that really set me off was when on September 14, 2006, Wal-mart announced the phasing out of their layaway program. Without knowing the true reasons why they elected to do that, I thought that made things tougher for their potential customers who have limited buying power. I still feel that way somewhat, but I admit I failed to get Wal-mart's side of the story. The reasons Wal-Mart cited were declining use and increasing expense. They did state that they were examining other financing options for their customer's large ticket purchases. It seems like sound logic to me. Perhaps I overreacted.

In any case, I thought that now would be a good time to get Wal-mart's side of the story. I've been looking at news articles and press releases on their web site and I must say that I am impressed. I never realized just how much Wal-mart actually does for the communities they serve. When you step back from the obvious "hype" issues and take a big picture view, Wal-mart actually takes on quite a nice warm glow. I found a multitude of admirable projects that Wal-mart leads or is involved in. I'd like to share some of those with you.

The $4.00 prescription drug program: Yes, it's a marketing strategy but let's be realistic. This move by Wal-mart will save American consumers millions of dollars in prescription drug costs. This is not a price rollback; this is a cost GIVE BACK. This program will put money directly back into the hands of hard working Americans.

Wal-Mart's Acres for America: Acres for America is a one-of-a-kind partnership between Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to conserve critical wildlife habitats for future generations. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. has committed $35 million over 10 years to permanently conserve at least one acre of priority wildlife habitat for every developed acre of Wal-Mart Store's retail campuses.

Not a day after Wal-Mart Stores' (NYSE:WMT) announcement it is cutting generic drug prices to $4 in Florida, Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) said it would immediately match these lower prices. Seems Target wants to offer everyday low prices too.

If pharmacy chains thought they were in trouble after Wal-Mart's announcement, their troubles have just doubled. As for Wal-Mart, its competitive edge had just been diluted.

The 300 drugs Wal-Mart had mentioned consist of commonly-prescribed ones, and will be offered for as little as $4 a month. Sixty-five Wal-Mart, Neighborhood Market and Sam's Club stores in the Tampa Bay area are supposed to start the program today. The program will be expanded to all of Florida by January and nationwide by next year.

Target didn't say if it would also expand its offer to match Wal-Mart, but if we read the statement it issued correctly, then Target will always be price-competitive with Wal-Mart.

While Wal-Mart's motives could be related to attempts to improve its embattled public image, Target's motives are clear, and neither are altruistic. But as long as the customers can benefit -- even if Wal-Mart and Target's customers come from different demographics -- the motives aren't that important, or are they?

Perhaps coming from Canada, where a system of public health-care exists, I can't properly relate to all this. I grind my teeth when I hear of big corporations trying to take advantage of poor health-care services while increasing their own profits.