News

Global progress has been made since the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) 13 years ago, according to a report published in the April 26 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

FDA approved a new fixed-dose combination ophthalmic suspension of a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor (brinzolamide 1.0%) and an alpha 2 adrenergic receptor agonist (brimonidine tartrate 0.2%), which is indicated for the reduction of intraocular pressure in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.

FDA has approved a supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for lubiprostone (Amitiza, Sucampo Pharmaceuticals and Takeda Pharmaceuticals) 24 ?g twice daily as the first oral medication for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation (OIC) in adult patients with chronic, noncancer pain.

There should be more mental healthcare service delivered in schools to provide comprehensive assessments, early interventions, and treatment

Federal law does not allow generic pharma companies to deviate from brand formula.

As hospitalizations rise, hospital deaths are on the decline.

As FDA takes an increased interest in the prescribing of narcotic medications, due to higher levels of prescribing and increased overdoses over the recent years, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) stressed the importance of understanding the causes of pain and issues of patient access to appropriate drug therapy.

FDA announced April 16 that it will not approve any generic versions of the original OxyContin formulation as the benefits no longer outweigh its risks. The original OxyContin was withdrawn from sale for reasons of safety, as it could be easily misused and abused by crushing and snorting. The original formulation was approved in 1995.

Healthcare providers believe that the pharmaceutical industry could play an important role in helping value-based healthcare providers such as accountable care organizations to deliver better care at lower cost. But pharma companies currently do a poor job of delivering the kind of data needed to accomplish that goal, according to a survey of physicians in value-based delivery models, conducted by Oliver Wyman, a New York-based management consulting firm.

Women at the highest risk for breast cancer benefit the most from preventive drug therapy, including tamoxifen and raloxifene, according to a study, published in the April 16, 2013, issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The increase in utilization of generic drugs is driving costs down, while the increase in specialty pharmacy utilization is driving costs up, according to the 2013 CVS Caremark annual Insights Report.

On April 15, 2013, 2 pharmaceutical compounders recalled their sterile products following an alert issued by FDA.

Thanks to consumer education efforts on heart disease and hypertension, self-reported hypertension and use of antihypertensive medications has increased in the United States according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Medicare is starting to examine RUC recommendations more closely

Guideline-directed medical therapy for heart failure (HF) is highly cost-effective and able to produce significant health gains for individuals with mild to moderate disease, according a study published April 2 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

On April 5, a US District Court judge ruled that the emergency contraception (EC) pill Plan B One-Step must be made available over-the-counter to all girls and women, regardless of their age. This ruling, made by Judge Edward R. Korman, was in response to a 2011 move by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

PCPs must consider the whole patient with type 2 diabetes, not just the blood glucose, noting that patient weight loss, weight maintenance, and exercise are huge challenges

Within current specialty plan designs, 35% of employers surveyed are using tiers, coinsurance and copays

States and counties with a high prevalence of delayed care had a weaker Medicaid infrastructure

he collaboration between Boehringer Ingelheim and Humana is designed to address these needs as healthcare delivery and treatment programs evolve

The College of American Pathologists (CAP), International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), and Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) recently issued evidence-based guidelines on molecular testing in lung cancer, and support the recommendation that physicians conduct testing in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients at the time of diagnosis or at the time of recurrence or progression.

The antiarrhythmia drug amiodarone appears to be linked to a higher risk of cancer in men, specifically those who receive higher cumulative defined daily doses within the first year of treatment, according to a retrospective study published online April 8 in Cancer.

A New York federal judge has struck down the restrictions on levonorgestrel-based emergency contraceptives and ordered the FDA to make the drugs available without a prescription and without point-of-sale or age restrictions within 30 days, according to an April 4th memorandum and order

Physicians would need to prescribe antibiotics to more than 12,000 patients diagnosed with common colds to prevent 1 hospital admission for pneumonia, according to a study published in the March/April issue of the Annals of Family Medicine.

The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy has changed the foundation’s name to the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy Foundation. In addition, it has elected four new members to its board of trustees, during the AMCP’s 25th annual meeting and exposition in San Diego.

The shift of Medicaid patients from fee-for-service to Managed Medicaid during 2011 resulted in a massive shift of prescriptions nationally, with nearly half of all Medicaid prescriptions now filled by Managed Medicaid, according to a recent study released by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics. It was presented April 4 during the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy Annual Meeting in San Diego.The number of monthly prescriptions dispensed through Managed Medicaid increased from 4.9 million in September 2011 to 12.5 million in June 2012, as reported in the IMS Institute study, “Impact on Patient Care of Shift From Fee-For-Service to Managed Medicaid.”

States with restrictive Medicaid policies need to alter those policies because of delayed medical care, according to a recent New England Journal of Medicine letter to the editor.

On April 1, the Indian Supreme Court denied Novartis’ appeal challenging the rejection of a patent for its cancer drug Glivec (imatinib mesylate), which has been patented in almost 40 countries including China, Russia, and Taiwan. This landmark ruling ends a 7-year legal battle by Novartis, which never has been granted an original patent for Glivec in India. The ruling will hinder medical progress and innovation, the manufacturer said.

FDA’s recent approval of canagliflozin (Invokana, Janssen Pharmaceuticals) for adults with type 2 diabetes (T2DM), represents a new efficacy and unique approach to diabetes treatment, according to industry experts.

In an examination of a type of treatment for allergic rhinitis and asthma that is used in Europe but not approved by FDA, researchers found moderate strength in the evidence from previous studies to support the use of sublingual immunotherapy for the treatment of these conditions, according to a review article in the March 27 issue of JAMA.