A prescription for a tantrum

February 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

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Does refilling a prescription need to be class warfare?

By KEVIN HORRIGAN | St. Louis Post-Dispatch 

When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. When I got sick, my mom got me medicine at a local drugstore by handing a nice man a prescription and paying him a few bucks.

When I became a man, I put away childish things. When I got sick, I handed my prescription to a pharmacist’s assistant in a white coat at a chain drugstore. Usually my insurance paid most of the cost.

Now that I am a middle-aged man, I have resumed childish tantrums. These occur whenever I have to refill a prescription. Unless it’s something short-term like an antibiotic, I have to go online to order a 90-day supply. If there are no refills remaining, I must try to get in touch with the doctor.

Or maybe there’s a billing snafu, some holdup among me, my health insurer, my health insurer’s pharmacy benefits manger and my health insurer’s flexible spending account manager, which wants more documentation than a French passport inspector.

My theory: They deliberately make things hard to discourage you from using your benefits.

To read the full column, click here.

Filed Under: Pharmacy Tagged With:

IACP Foundation Research New Grant Award Announcements

February 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

News Release from IACP

IACP Foundation President, Shara Rudner, RPh, FIACP has announced that the organization has issued two new grants for pharmacy compounding research.  “These studies will help add valuable information to the scientific literature and the Foundation was pleased to see so many exceptional responses to our second RFP of 2011,” said Rudner.  “These projects are the direct result of contributions from IACP members to the Foundation’s agenda of advancing the science of compounding.”

A grant has been awarded to Grove Pharmacy in the amount of $15,860 for a research study to detail the process of performing beyond-use date (BUD) testing, as well as provide much needed BUD data on commonly prescribed Erectile Dysfunction (ED) sterile compounds under the guidance of Sarah Billings, Pharm.D., C.D.E., Director of Clinical Programs.  A detailed description of the process that Grove Pharmacy undertakes to obtain sterility results for six concentrations of sterile ED medications will be written up and provided to IACP members.

The Foundation also is providing a grant of $10,000 to the Pacific University School of Pharmacy for a research study of the solid-state stability of compounded levothyroxine formulations.  This project is a collaboration between the school’s pharmaceutical science faculty Deepa A. Rao, Ph.D. and clinical faculty member Jeff Fortner, Pharm.D.  A summary report, poster, and a manuscript will be completed by the end of February 2013.

Since 2005, IACP Foundation has awarded more than $125,000 in grants to academicians and practitioners.  The IACP Foundation Research division strongly believes research regarding pharmacy compounds is vital to strengthening the role of pharmacy in personalized medicine.

For more information, please click here.

Filed Under: Compounding Tagged With: , ,

Compounding pharmacies can help resolve drug shortages

February 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By: VALERIE DeBENEDETTE |Drug Topics

More than 200 medications crucial in fighting conditions such as leukemia, breast and colon cancer, and infectious diseases are in short supply in the United States. As a result, compounding pharmacists and pharmacies that have the resources to compound sterile injectable formulations and other forms of drugs are being called on to help deal with these shortages.

Professional Compounding Centers of America (PCCA) is urging its member pharmacists to continue working with physicians and hospitals to help reduce the problem of drug shortages — which has been going on for years, according to John Preckshot, RPh, an independent compounding pharmacist in Peoria, Ill. Now, however, the situation “is finally reaching epidemic proportions.”

For the full article, click here.

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APhA Releases New Edition of Popular NAPLEX Review

January 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Contact: Michelle Fritts

WASHINGTON, DC – The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) just published the 9th edition of The APhA Complete Review for Pharmacy, a reference widely used by student pharmacists and new graduates to prepare for the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX®). The book is also a popular benefit of APhA membership, provided at no charge, except for a $10 shipping and handling fee, to thousands of final-year student members upon request.

The 9th edition features a three new chapters—Drug Information, Biostatistics and Clinical Trial Design—plus updated information on drug approvals, indications, and formulations. About half of the book’s 41 chapters focus on drug therapy for chronic and common diseases, the heart of today’s NAPLEX. Other features of the book are more than 900 practice exam questions and answers, plus explanations that reinforce key learning points; and 13 appendices providing a broad range of useful information including normal laboratory values, drugs in renal and hepatic failure and the top 200 prescription and over-the-counter products.

The APhA Complete Review for Pharmacy, 9th edition (ISBN 978-1-58212-162-8; softbound; 996 pages; $65.95 [$52.95 for APhA members]), was edited by Dick R. Gourley, PharmD, and James C. Eoff III, PharmD. Gourley is Dean Emeritus at the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy, Memphis, and Interim President of the University of Tennessee Research Foundation. Eoff is Executive is Interim Dean at the College of Pharmacy. The more than 40 chapter authors all are current or former faculty members at the college.

A current, one-volume compilation of pharmacy knowledge, The APhA Complete Review for Pharmacy is also a popular reference for busy practitioners wishing to stay current and for those returning to the field after a hiatus. The book may be ordered online atwww.pharmacist.com/shop_apha or by phone by calling 800-878-0729.

The content is also available through APhA’s digital subscription product, PharmacyLibrary, www.pharmacylibrary.com.  In addition to the searchable book, PharmacyLibrary features a NAPLEX Review self-testing functionality, using all 900 questions from the book plus an additional 700 practice exam questions exclusive to PharmacyLibrary.

About the American Pharmacists Association
The American Pharmacists Association, founded in 1852 as the American Pharmaceutical Association, is a 501 (c)(6) organization, representing more than 62,000 practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, student pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and others interested in advancing the profession. APhA, dedicated to helping all pharmacists improve medication use and advance patient care, is the first-established and largest association of pharmacists in the United States.

Filed Under: Pharmacy Tagged With: , , ,

FDA, FTC Act To Remove HCG Weight Loss Products From Market

January 23, 2012 By 1 Comment

FDA News Release

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today issued seven Warning Letters to companies marketing over-the counter (OTC) HCG products that are labeled as “homeopathic” for weight loss.

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a hormone produced by the human placenta and found in the urine of pregnant women. HCG is FDA-approved as an injectable prescription drug for the treatment of some cases of female infertility and other medical conditions.

The letters warn the companies that they are violating federal law by selling drugs that have not been approved, and by making unsupported claims for the substances. There are no FDA-approved HCG drug products for weight loss.

The joint action is the first step in keeping the unproven and potentially unsafe products from being marketed online and in retail outlets as oral drops, pellets, and sprays.

The labeling for the “homeopathic” HCG products states that each product should be taken in conjunction with a very low calorie diet. There is no substantial evidence HCG increases weight loss beyond that resulting from the recommended caloric restriction. Consumers on a very low calorie diet are at increased risk for side effects including gallstone formation, electrolyte imbalance, and heart arrhythmias.

“These HCG products marketed over-the-counter are unproven to help with weight loss and are potentially dangerous even if taken as directed,” said Ilisa Bernstein, acting director of the Office of Compliance in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “And a very low calorie diet should only be used under proper medical supervision.”

“Deceptive advertising about weight loss products is one of the most prevalent types of fraud,” said David Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Any advertiser who makes health claims about a product is required by federal law to back them up with competent and reliable scientific evidence, so consumers have the accurate information they need to make good decisions.”

According to the Warning Letters, the companies have 15 days to notify the FDA of the steps they have taken to correct the violations cited. Failure to do so may result in legal action, including seizure and injunction, or criminal prosecution.

Consumers and health care professionals are encouraged to report adverse events (side effects) that may be related to the use of these products to MedWatch, the FDA’s voluntary reporting program, by calling 800-FDA-1088, or electronically at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm.

Filed Under: missouri pharmacist
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