U.S. Senate Votes in Favor of H.R.6331
July 11, 2008
The U.S. Senate voted by unanimous consent in favor of H.R. 6331. The Medicare Improvement for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 contains three critical provisions for community pharmacies; accelerated reimbursements for Medicare Part D claims, delayed cuts to Medicaid generic prescription drug reimbursement, and suspension of the flawed Medicare DMEPOS (durable medical equipment, prosthetics and supplies) competitive bidding program.
In response Bruce T. Roberts, RPh, executive vice president and CEO of the National Community Pharmacists Association, issued the following statement:
“Community pharmacies across the country applaud the U.S. Senate for voting today in favor of patient access to life-saving prescription drugs and counsel from their pharmacists.
Those Senators who voted today now represent a veto-proof majority. We urge President Bush to recognize the importance of this legislation and quickly sign it into law.”
News Via NCPA.
Popular Antidepressants Linked to GI Bleeding
July 10, 2008
A new study found the commonly prescribed antidepressant class SSRIs may cause bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract, especially when combined with NSAIDs. The researchers said the numbers suggest one in 2,000 patients treated with an SSRI would have a case of upper GI tract bleeding, and one in 250 on SSRIs and NSAID drugs would have GI bleeding.
Complete Story at Yahoo! Haelth News
FDA orders ‘black box’ warning on certain antibiotics
July 8, 2008
The U.S. FDA Tuesday ordered the makers of certain antibiotics to add a “black box” label warning to alert patients of possible tendon ruptures and tendonitis.
The new language will strengthen the existing warnings,” said Dr. Edward Cox, director of the FDA’s Office of Antimicrobial Products.
The FDA is requiring the label warnings and a medication guide for fluoroquinolone drugs, which include Cipro, Levaquin, Avelox, Noroxin and Floxin. Read more
Watson Launches Generic MARINOL
July 7, 2008
On June 30, Watson Pharmaceuticals launched the authorized generic version of dronabinol capsules in the 2.5mg, 5mg, and 10mg strengths. Dronabinol is the generic version of Solvay Pharmaceuticals’ Marinol® CIII Capsules.
This product is used to treat nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy and appetite loss for people with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Marinol capsules had U.S. sales of approximately $156 million in 2007.
ASHP Offers Expertise To New NABP Medication Safety Task Forces
July 5, 2008
ASHP met recently with the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) to explore new opportunities for collaboration as NABP launches several task forces to improve the quality of patient care and medication safety.
An ASHP staff expert will serve on the NABP’s new Task Force on Standardized Pharmacy Technician Education. The task force will advise NABP on amending its guidelines to include standardized pharmacy technician education and training as prerequisites for registration or licensure. Pharmacy boards refer to the guidelines when developing state laws and board rules.
The goals of the task force align closely with ASHP’s recently launched Pharmacy Technician Initiative, a partnership between the Society and its state affiliates to achieve standardized requirements for pharmacy technician training, education, certification, and registration.
The Society also will be a resource for two additional NABP task forces that will make guideline recommendations on standardized prescription labels and assess guidelines for ensuring the integrity and safety of medications in medication collection programs.
Via Medical News Today
DEA to patients: Don’t return unused controlled substance prescription medications to pharmacyAmerican Pharmacists Association
July 3, 2008
Generic Risperdal
July 2, 2008
The Food & Drug Administration has approved the first generic version for the Risperdal. Pharmacies can buy varying strengths of risperidone tablets from TEVA Pharmaceuticals or they can purchase an authorized generic version from Patriot Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of McNeil-PPC. Both Patriot and Janssen are part of Johnson & Johnson.
The Food & Drug Administration cautions that the labeling of the generic risperidone may differ from that of Risperdal because some uses of the drug are protected by patents and exclusivity. Risperdal is used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other psychiatric conditions.
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