Associations News

The California State Board of Pharmacy is considering new regulations that would require pharmacies throughout the state to provide translated labels on prescription drug bottles.

It’s been more than four decades since FDA approved naloxone, which can restore breathing in people overdosing on opiate drugs such oxycodone, hydrocodone, and heroin.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) announced that pharmacy residency programs have increased by 77% and pharmacy technician programs by 131% over the last seven years.

That’s the objective of many healthcare providers. Brian Isetts, a pharmacy professor at the University of Minnesota and a former policy fellow at CMS, addressed the topic at the PPSI Annual Breakfast Meeting in Orlando.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently launched a new webpage urging pharmacists to take a lead role in the government’s smoking cessation efforts.

Members of the Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) recently released a new resource document that details the patient care process. The document was developed over a two-year period and aims to “promote consistency in patient care service delivery across the profession.”

During the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ upcoming 2014 Midyear Clinical Meeting and Exhibition in Anaheim, CA., a so-called Intelligent Pharmacy Pavilion (IPP) featuring demonstration rooms with the latest technology for hospital and ambulatory care pharmacies will be showcased.

State lawmakers in California are considering a bill that would allow patients to opt out of health plan requirements that certain prescriptions be filled by mail order.

A bill that would authorize California pharmacists to dispense naloxone hydrochloride, a drug used to reverse opiate overdoses, has cleared several legislative hurdles.

Now that the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) has secured the Internet domain .pharmacy, the group hopes the designation will help consumers identify legitimate online pharmacies and related resources.

Last November, the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC) recommended statin therapy for approximately 33 million more Americans who don’t have cardiovascular disease (CVD), but have an estimated 10-year CV risk of 7.5% or higher.

Pharmacy groups, patient advocates, and many businesses are urging Congress to pass legislation that would allow Medicare beneficiaries to use discounted or preferred copays at independent pharmacies willing to accept the terms of Part D prescription drug plans.

In May, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its final rule for 2015 Part D prescription drug benefit programs, requiring increased price transparency for pharmacies by 2016.

Pharmacists need to believe in the basic skills that were once taught. We need to practice pharmacy in the traditional sense.

A pharmacist must have a valid license issued by the board of the state in which he wishes to practice. New pharmacy graduates need to investigate individual state pharmacy board requirements.

California is considering changes to state law designed to make the labels on prescription drug containers easier to understand.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) has introduced a new logo and tagline that it said better represents the group’s mission and vision.

An Oklahoma pharmacist and the pharmacy department at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston have received the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ (ASHP’s) Chief Executive Officer’s Award for Courageous Service.

An educational video, released at the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy annual meeting in May, helps pharmacists identify the ‘red flags’ of prescription drug abuse and diversion when they dispense controlled substances.

Although there are still unfilled pharmacist jobs in hospitals and health systems, the vacancy rate for pharmacists in such settings is as low as it’s been in more than a decade, according to a staffing survey by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

The Maine Board of Pharmacy has directed state attorneys to send a cease-and-desist letter to an online Canadian pharmacy that markets cheap Rx drugs.

Advocacy issues discussed at the conference included two pieces of proposed legislation that would affect compensation for pharmacists and collaborative practice agreements between pharmacists and physicians.

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation has provided $1.8 million to researchers to study the impact of pharmacist-collaboration in medication management for patients who have been discharged from the hospital.

B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, CEO of the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) said the organization supports new legislation introduced May 6 that would give patients greater access to Medicare Part D plan networks.

Gov. Scott Walker recently signed a bill into law authorizing physician-pharmacist collaboration in any patient setting throughout Wisconsin.

There are associations and boards representing pharmacists in all sorts of settings. Now, there is a national association to support pharmacists who dispense marijuana products to treat specialty diseases.

Pharmacists who contacted high-risk patients within 72 hours of discharge from Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, found more than half of the patients had medication-related issues. In a different group of high-risk patients who had received inpatient interventions, 35% of patients were found to have issues after a pharmacist reviewed their medications just prior to discharge, according to Laura Carr, PharmD.

A recent victory for New York State pharmacists fighting against reduced Medicaid reimbursements may be a victory for pharmacists across the country.

The fight over whether pharmacists serve "patients" or "customers" continues. And now there's a new question: How come a major national pharmacy organization has no opinion?

Pharmacies that don't use social media will soon go the way of the dinosaur. Here are six tips for making these modalities work for you.