Legal News

A coalition of healthcare industry groups has sent a letter to the bipartisan leadership in Congress seeking to delay pending Medicaid cuts.

The Joint Commission is targeting patient safety failures with a new program that will directly affect pharmacy operations.

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that the FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee voted that clinical data support both the efficacy and safety of Cervarix, the company's candidate cervical cancer vaccine.

Manufacturers, promoters, and sellers of dietary supplements are prohibited by law from making claims to treat or cure illness or disease, or their symptoms. Pharmacists should encourage patients to check with medical professionals before commencing use of any dietary supplement.

With the settlement of the class-action lawsuit brought against First DataBank and McKesson by third-party payors accusing the companies of conspiring to inflate average wholesale prices (AWP) of hundreds of drugs, AWP values will roll back from 1.25 to 1.20 times the drugs' wholesale acquisition cost (WAC).

The Iowa Board of Pharmacy is now one step closer to making its recommendation to the state?s legislature regarding the use of medical marijuana in the state.

The West Virginia Attorney General's Office has filed a lawsuit alleging that CVS Pharmacy, Kmart, Kroger, Walgreen Pharmacy, and Target violated a state law designed to promote use of generic equivalents for brand-name prescription drugs, according to media reports in the state.

In what it describes as an effort to stabilize and possibly decrease costs, a significant portion of which are associated with enforcement of laws and regulations, the Virginia Board of Pharmacy is testing new processes to help increase the efficiency of certain noncompliance issues.

The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy will convene a two-day task force Oct. 28 and October 29 to research various prescription-drug monitoring programs and recommend standards or model rules.

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that two lots of Advair Diskus medication were stolen earlier this month from the company's distribution facility near Richmond, Virginia.

The program created to provide Medicare recipients with prescription drug benefits exceeded expectations during its first two years. Keep reading to learn the details.

Keep reading to learn about some legal roadblocks in the way of pharmacy technicians.

The Pharmacists Society of the State of New York is fighting mad over the state's plan to contract with mail-order pharmacies to deliver high-cost medications to Medicaid customers.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Saphris tablets to treat adults with schizophrenia, and bipolar I disorder in adults.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration published two rules recently to help clarify how very ill patients can obtain access to investigational drugs and biologics when they are not eligible to participate in a clinical trial and have no other satisfactory treatment options.

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the National Community Pharmacists Association are moving ahead with their lawsuit against Delaware's changes to Medicaid reimbursement rates, even after Walgreen Co. said it no longer supports the suit.

A Miami resident has been convicted of both conspiring to divert human growth hormones and causing the diversion of these human growth hormones in interstate commerce.

The death of a teenager led Congress to pass the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act in 2008, amending the Controlled Substances Act to prohibit delivery, distribution, or dispensing of controlled substances over the Internet without a valid prescription.

Over the next several years, generic versions of many best-selling drugs will become available as patents reach their expiration dates.

Pharmacy mistakes can sometimes lead to injury or even death. Pharmacists can be held liable in a civil suit for money damages; now a pharmacist in Ohio may be convicted of a criminal charge in the accidental death of a two-year-old girl. It is possible that the effect of criminal liability upon professional practices will worsen outcomes rather than improve them.

In coming years, nearly half of all newly approved drugs could come from biotechnology. With stakes so high, Congress is working to create a more direct pathway for the FDA to approve "biosimilars", the generic or "follow-on" versions of biologics. Two bills before Congress approach the issues differently.

The FTC has extended to November the compliance deadline for its "Red Flag" identity theft regulation, affecting all businessess that extend credit to customers.

Iowa proponents have sought legalization of medical marijuana for years. Now the state?s Board of Pharmacy Examiners (IBPE) wants to learn more about the issue.

The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) recently wrote to a key standards-setting body requesting action on a number of regarding a new Internal Revenue Service requirement meant to ensure flexible spending account debit cards are used properly that is seen by the association as problematic.

The California State Assembly Committee on Labor and Employment recently held an informational hearing on the subject of workplace conditions in retail pharmacies. Among those testifying were pharmacists, academics, students, consumer advocates, and representatives of the California Retailers Association.

Orlando, Fla.--Pharmacists can collaborate with physicians and other health professionals in many ways, including through drug therapy management programs, pharmacy vaccine programs, and practice agreements, to build revenue streams and improve patient outcomes.

The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) is still working to urge Congress to exempt community pharmacies from the Oct. 1 accreditation and surety bond requirements needed to continue providing durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS) to Medicare patients.

On July 20, Steven C. Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS), sent a letter to political leaders regarding the America's Affordable Health Choices Act.

Congress gave the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) jurisdiction over tobacco in June, but don?t look for any quick changes in tobacco policy, products, or marketing. The agency is asking the public for guidance before jumping into regulation.

As of June 2009, it appears that North Carolina remains the only state to require any consistent public reporting of pharmacy-associated medication errors. In North Carolina, pharmacists must report errors associated with deaths.