Digitek Recall
April 29, 2008
Actavis Totowa LLC is recalling all lots of the prescription drug Digitek, used to treat heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms, because some of the drug’s tablets might contain twice the approved level of the active ingredient.
Spokesman John LaRocca said 11 people have reported getting sick after taking the drug, but the Morristown, N.J., company is not aware of any deaths. The drug was distributed by Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. under a “Bertek” label and by UDL Laboratories Inc. under a “UDL” label.
South Carolina Pharmacy Technician Legislation
April 21, 2008
A bill that would increase the tech-to-pharmacist ratio in South Carolina does not serve the public interest, the ASHP told members of the South Carolina Senate Medical Affairs Committee in a letter urging the committee to refer Senate Bill 1156 back to the Medical Affairs Subcommittee for further study.
Senate Bill 1156 proposes to amend Section 40-43-86 of the Pharmacy Practice Act and increase the tech-to-pharmacist ratio from 3:1 with two techs being certified up to 3:1 with only one tech being certified, and 4:1 if there are 2 certified techs on duty. Read more
DEA proposes rule to curb fentanyl abuse
April 14, 2008
The distribution of illicitly manufactured fentanyl has caused an unprecedented outbreak of hundreds of fentanyl-related overdoses in the United States in recent months. The DEA believes that the control of ANPP (or 4-anilino-N-phenethyl-4-piperidine) as a schedule II controlled substance is necessary to prevent its diversion as an immediate chemical intermediary for the illicit production of fentanyl. Read more
Walgreens Puls Oxycontin from select stores
April 5, 2008
A spree of pharmacy robberies has prompted Walgreens to remove the painkiller OxyContin from some of its Tampa Bay, FL drug stores.
Driven by an increase in prescription drug abuse, pharmacy robberies have surged in recent years.
In just the past two weeks, at least six Tampa Bay area drug stores have been robbed. In all those hold-ups, the robbers demanded drugs – in most cases oxycodone, the active ingredient in OxyContin.
Walgreens spokeswoman Carol Hively said the company pulled OxyContin from some stores out of concern for the safety of customers and employees. Those pharmacies have signs indicating the drug has been pulled, she said.
Pharmacists will direct customers to other stores that still carry the drug. It is unclear how many stores will sell the drug.
Hively said it’s rare for Walgreens to pull a drug from stores. She said OxyContin was pulled because it’s the “drug of choice” for many pharmacy robbers.
Walgreens pulled OxyContin from some Boston-area stores several years ago and also has pulled the drug from some Nashville stores after robberies increased, Hively said. It’s usually a temporary move and ends after arrests are made.
“This is an extreme decision because we don’t like to restrict access of OxyContin to legitimate customers,” Hively said.
Via Tampabay.com
CPhTLink Contest
April 2, 2008
The First CPhtLink.com contest will be underway soon. It will come in the beloved format of “Can you read this RX”. I am in the search for some of the most crazy illedgable scripts known to mankind. Then, my e-mail box will be open to your guesses.
All correct answers will be entered into the pile for a random drawing. The winner will get a $50 Amazon.com e-gift card.
Fiffty bucks ain’t much, I know. But I’m just a tech. And I just wanted to throw some fun everyones way, and get some people active!
If you have a script that you think would be good for the contest, send it to me at webmaster(at)cphtlink.com. The names and prescripber information will be photoshopped out to protect privacy, and you would be much appreciated for getting some of these contests underway.
What other prizes (within the humble limits of a tech) would appeal to you? 1 year membership in the NPTA? 20 CEU’s from TECH LECTURES?
Let me know. I’ll see what we can swing.
UW-Madison pharmacy student to be deported
April 2, 2008
Via The Daily Cardinal:
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials released Tope Awe, a UW-Madison pharmacy school student, from custody in Milwaukee Tuesday, pending deportation.
According to ICE spokesperson Gail Montenegro, Awe and her brother Oluwabenga received orders for deportation. Both are required to wear ankle monitoring bracelets and check in periodically with immigration officials while documents for their return to Nigeria are assembled.
Awe was placed in federal custody March 27 after being summoned to the Milwaukee immigration office.
According to Montenegro, Awe’s family emigrated from Nigeria in 1989 and repeatedly applied for immigration benefits but their requests were repeatedly denied. ICE gave the family until July 31, 2004 to leave the county.
“The Awe family failed to make any contact with ICE after July 2004 as required, and they remained in the United States illegally,” Montenegro said. “In failing to comply with the conditions set by ICE, the Awe family became immigration fugitives with outstanding orders of deportation.”
UW-Madison students rallied against immigrant deportation Monday, and members of several student organizations are circulating a petition on Awe’s behalf.
Webmasters note/Opinion:
It appears that this student is in no way a threat to our national security. Considering the shortage of Pharmacists in the country, shouldn’t this student be considered for a visa or green card for herself? The real error seems to be on behalf of her parent’s application being denied and their unwillingness to comply with the ICE’s orders.
Let the kid stay in school. She will be an asset to the country once she graduates.
Attorney General sued FDA over OxyContin
April 1, 2008
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal filed a lawsuit in federal court today against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to force the agency to act on his 4-year-old citizen petition seeking stronger warnings related to OxyContin.
Blumenthal said that continued inaction by the FDA on OxyContin
warnings and other matters could be devastating because, as the U.S. Department of Justice has confirmed, abuse of prescription drugs such as OxyContin has become the greatest drug threat in the Northeast region. Blumenthal filed the citizen petition in January 2004 as a result of his 2003 investigation into Purdue Pharma L.P., OxyContin’s manufacturer.
OxyContin is a controlled-release narcotic designed to deliver a consistent level of oxycodone over a 12-hour period. Despite information on the drug’s package insert that the FDA recommends only 12-hour dosing, Blumenthal’s investigation has revealed that Purdue Pharma had strong evidence showing that shorter dosing is rife with hazard and approximately 20 percent of all OxyContin prescriptions were written for dosing intervals of eight hours or less.
Although this powerful painkiller can benefit many patients if used properly, prescribers and patients cannot make sound treatment decisions without full knowledge of the risks and benefits of prescribing OxyContin, Blumenthal said.
Today’s lawsuit, filed with the U.S. District Court, seeks a court finding that the FDA’s failure to act on the petition was unlawful, and an order compelling FDA action on the petition.
“The FDA has irresponsibly and illegally ignored the clear need for warnings about OxyContin prescription practices that promote abuse and addiction,” Blumenthal said. “Prescription narcotic abuse of drugs like OxyContin has become the biggest drug threat in the Northeast, causing countless cases of diversion and addiction tragedies. Twenty percent of OxyContin prescriptions are for doses at dangerous eight-hour time intervals or shorter, but the FDA remains oblivious and obtuse. These ongoing practices produce, in effect, an extra dose a day. After four years of proven dosing dangers and Purdue Pharma criminal convictions, the FDA seems in denial. The agency has failed to approve or even deny our 4-year-old petition seeking strengthened warnings. We now need to resort to a court order to force the FDA to take action to warn and protect patients.
“The FDA is disregarding dangers of adverse reactions and side effects, as well as abuse and addiction, by failing to require stronger black box warnings or issue a safety alert or public health advisory. The FDA has a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that providers and patients fully understand the potential dangers of improperly prescribing OxyContin. Inaction by the FDA is completely inexplicable and unacceptable when public health and safety are clearly at risk.”
Purdue Pharma’s internal documents confirm that many physicians,
particularly family practice and general practitioners, did not understand OxyContin’s controlled release delivery system and accordingly were prescribing the drug inappropriately.
As one company document cautioned sales representatives, “[l]ook
especially hard at FP/GP percentages [of off-label prescribing] they are the worst offenders, and therefore require the most education on Oxy’s dosing.”
On Jan. 23, 2004, Blumenthal petitioned the FDA to require that Purdue Pharma:
• Strengthen OxyContin’s black box warning to expressly reinforce the FDA approved dosing regimen and to add specific information regarding the potential dangers associated with an off-label dosing schedule;
• Issue a “Dear Healthcare Professional” letter to inform physicians of controlled substances about the potential risks of prescribing OxyContin at dosing intervals that are shorter than the FDA-approved 12-hour dosing schedule.
In addition, or as an alternative, Blumenthal requested that the FDA disseminate warnings concerning the OxyContin dosing issues through a Safety Alert, Public Health Advisory, Talk Paper or Urgent Notice.
Blumenthal thanked those in his office who worked on the investigation – Assistant Attorneys General Christopher Haddad, Robert Deichert, Karen Haabestad, Arnold Menchel and Michael Cole.
Via Attorney Generals Office/StamfordPlus.com
ACE inhibitor w/ calcium channel blocker better than pairing it with diuretic
April 1, 2008
A large trial shows that combining an ACE inhibitor with a calcium channel blocker in individuals with high blood pressure who are at high risk for cardiovascular complications resulted in a 20 percent reduction in the risks of death, heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular troubles.
The ACE inhibitor and calcium channel blocker were combined in a single pill. Patients receiving this treatment were compared to patients who received an ACE inhibitor combined with a diuretic.
