All News

Medicare beneficiaries who spend little on drugs would benefit fromPart D, according to a study conducted on behalf of Medicare Today,a partnership of 400 organizations representing seniors, healthcaregroups, and employers. Seniors who spend just $381 per year ondrugs would break even under Part D and out of 1,000 beneficiarieswho spend $381 or less, half can expect to see their costs increaseto an average of $730 this year.

H.D. Smith has paid a $2 million civil forfeiture, agreed to modifyits purchasing policies, and implemented a compliance program inreturn for federal authorities dropping all charges against theIllinois wholesaler. The indictment stemmed from a counterfeitLipitor scheme, which led to the conviction of a formernonmanagement Smith employee.

Inhaled corticosteroids used by preschool-aged children at risk ofasthma will not prevent the disease from developing, according toNHLBI. The findings of a multicenter clinical trial from thePrevention of Early Asthma in Kids (PEAK) study, supported byNHLBI, answered the question as to whether treatment of airwayinflammation early enough could prevent the development of asthma.

Qatar has donated $17.5 million to New Orleans-based XavierUniversity, with $12.5 million earmarked for construction of anadditional 60,000 sq. ft. at the college of pharmacy to increaseenrollment.

IVAX Pharmaceuticals is recalling affected lots of Goldlineacetaminophen tablets and caplets due to a labeling error statingthat usage should not exceed 12 pills per 24 hours, instead of therecommended eight-pill maximum in a 24-hour period.

The National Oncologic PET Registry (NOPR) will officially launchon May 8, allowing coverage for Medicare beneficiaries who need PETscans for all types of cancers.

In an effort to solve the uncertainty of vaccine delivery, FFFEnterprises, a distributor of influenza vaccines, has created a Website for providers to order next season's flu vaccine.

The Pharmacy Partnership for Tobacco Cessation has launched a CEprogram designed to teach pharmacists how to apply evidence-basedmethods to motivate, educate, and assist consumers in their effortsto quit using tobacco.

CMS should enhance communication with Part D beneficiaries byimproving written materials, the toll-free help line, and theMedicare Web site, according to a study by the GovernmentAccountability Office.

The National Council of State Pharmacy Association Executives hasvoted to change its name to the National Alliance of State PharmacyAssociations (NASPA)

Bristol-Myers Squibb will no longer make or market Tequin(gatifloxacin) but will not pull current supplies off the market.

GlaxoSmithKline will continue to offer its patient assistanceprogram to the elderly and disabled who qualify for but are notenrolled in Medicare Part D.

Qatar has donated $17.5 million to New Orleans-based XavierUniversity, with $12.5 million earmarked for construction of anadditional 60,000 sq. ft. at the college of pharmacy to increaseenrollment.

Seventy percent of surveyed pharmacists reported an increase insenior traffic since Jan. 1, according to an Epocrates Honor Panelsurvey of 537 R.Ph.s.

The University of Southern California, the largest employer in LosAngeles, has become the sixth participant in the Diabetes 10 CityChallenge, the APhA Foundation's employer-based initiative tofoster diabetes patient self-management with support from diabeteseducators and physicians

The California pharmacy board approved regulations to allowinstallation of automated dispensing kiosks and to permittechnicians to check the work of other technicians in hospitalswith clinical pharmacy programs

OTN, a leading specialty pharmaceutical services company and thedistributor of products and services to the community oncologymarket, announced that it has agreed to purchase the oncologydistribution unit of Cardinal Health.

Wyeth Pharmaceutical's Prevnar (pneumococcal 7-valent conjugatevaccine) is now being manufactured in single-dose, prefilledsyringes.

Some states are now adding a technician to their board of pharmacy.How do you feel about this development?

Medication therapy management (MTM), an integral part of MedicarePart D, is likely to evolve into a "medication checkup," andsupermarket pharmacies are the perfect places to offer theseservices. So claims Anne Burns, R.Ph., group director of practicedevelopment and research, American Pharmacists Association.

Pharmacy is a key player in skin care. From rosacea to common skin infections and psoriasis, pharmacists are playing a growing role in the successful treatment of dermatological problems.

Everyone has learned a lot since Medicare Part D was started on Jan. 1. Pharmacists learned new processes, people on Medicare learned new terms and options. Insurers and the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services learned to respond quickly to misunderstandings, technical glitches, and personnel shortages.

To prepare for the seasonal onslaught of pollen, mostallergy-stricken patients will try to find relief throughnonsedating antihistamines and nasal inhalers. Many others willundergo allergen immunotherapy as a next step, receiving theestimated 60 to 90 injections necessary for each treatment period.Although allergy shots can be effective, treatment is often atime-consuming and costly process. Preliminary results for newtherapies show promise and may soon offer allergy sufferers moreoptions with fewer injections.

According to oncology experts, active cancer accounts for about 20%of all new venous thromboembolic events (VTE), and cancer patientshave a four-to sevenfold higher risk for VTE. Add to that the riskof being treated with chemotherapy drugs that may haveclot-producing properties of their own, and you are talking about aserious risk for a deadly condition. With this in mind, theNational Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) recently released newguidelines to help oncology practitioners prevent, diagnose, andtreat VTE.

Despite an over-my-dead-body opposition in some states, the day israpidly approaching when pharmacists will be able to obtain anational license valid in multiple states, predicted CarmenCatizone, R.Ph., executive director of the National Association ofBoards of Pharmacy.

CMS has announced plans for a "stakeholder-led Pharmacy QualityAlliance" to improve pharmacy care and outcomes, "includingmeasurement approaches." In recent years, CMS has linkedperformance with pay for other healthcare providers, an examplebeing the Hospital Quality Initiative (HQI). One result of HQI is aWeb-based list of quality measures on which hospitals must reporttheir performance or they get less of an increase in their Medicarereimbursement. CMS plans to set up a similar system for R.Ph.s.

A gay-rights group has sued Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher forfailing to veto $11 million for a pharmacy school to be built at aprivate Baptist university that recently expelled a gay student.

Standard Management Corp., Indianapolis-based provider ofpharmaceuticals to the long-term care and infusion therapyindustry, announced the signing of a definitive agreement for thepurchase of In-House Pharmacies of San Diego. In-House Pharmacies,with about $40 million in annual revenues specializes in long termcare and represents the largest in a series of acquisitions byStandard Management, adding to its national presence.

U.S. pharmacists filled more than 270 million prescriptions in thefirst three months of the Medicare Part D drug benefit, accordingto CMS. During March, R.Ph.s filled an average of three millionPart D scripts every day.