All News

Most pharmacists are working hard, earning good money, and loving it.

Pharmacy associations are filing lawsuits to stop states' Medicaid program from reducing pharmacy reimbursement and/or implementing co-pays.

How PBMs work

Stattera (Atomoxetine) by Lilly for use in patients with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

One half of the Iowa communnity pharmacists in 117 participating pharmacies in a Medicaid program failed to provide the pharmaceutical care services they were trained to offer and two thirds of eligible patients never received the services, according to a study.

New JCAHO standards are coming for hospitals in 2004

A federal judge handed community pharmacy a major victory when he ruled that the Bush Administration lacked the authority for Medicare-endorsed Rx discount cards sponosored by PBMs and issued an injunction to halt the program.

The pharmacists and technicians aboard the Navy hospital ship Comfort man the pharmacy in times of peace and war.

Pharmaceutical Clinical Technology's new paradigm expands the pharmacist's role to include management of devices, as well as drugs.

What business contracts must be obtained from HIPAA business associates?

The FDA recently approved azelaic acid (Finacea, Berlex Laboratories) 15.0% gel for the topical treatment of the inflammatory papules and pustules characteristic of mild-to-moderate rosacea. Finacea should be available in pharmacies during the first quarter of 2003.

The Massachusetts attorney general blasted pharmcies for passing a new $1.30 per Rx tax onto consumers. The tax was imposed to raise $36 million for the state Medicaid program but the law doesn't spell out whether pharmacies can charge consumers to the levy.

More states pass laws requiring the reporting of drug errors

Medicaid reimbursement chart

Tennessee pharmacists are bracing for a change that will force them to absorb Rx copays that will exceed the dispensing fee paid by the state's Medicaid program, TennCare.

"It's Illegal" is a new campaign to make US consumers and the media aware that importing Rx drugs is unlawful has been launched by the National Community Pharmacists Association

A record number of pharmacists requested licensure transfer in 2002, according to the National Association of Boards of Pharamcy.

Community pharmacists are angry that the government began soliciting sponsors for the proposed Medicare-endorsed discount Rx drug cards before a federal judge had issued a final ruling on the legality of the proposal.

Can pharmacies transmit PHI to manufacturers for rebate processing?

Forteo (teriparatide) treats osteoporosis in men,and women who have gone through menopause.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) now have a first-of-its-kind therapeutic option that is safe, convenient, and effective. The FDA recently approved adalimumab (Humira, Abbott Laboratories) for reducing the signs and symptoms and inhibiting the progression of structural damage in adult patients with moderately to severely active RA who have had an inadequate response to one or more disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). The approval of adalimumab comes just nine months after regulatory submission. Adalimumab will be available in pharmacies by mid-January.

Happy Harry's, Rite Aid, and Eckerd have reached an agreement with DHSS regarding Medicaid reimbursement rates. They were threatening to pull out of Medicaid in 2002.

More state pharmacy boards are moving to requiring that technicians be certified.

Keeping patients on long term therapy requires multifaceted interventions but even complex approaches don't lead to big improvements in adherence or improved outcomes, according to researchers from the McMaster University Faculty of Health Sciences in Ontario.

Second installment to Countdown to HIPAA

In an apparent first, Massachusetts has added a physician and a nurse as members of the state pharmacy board.

You can prevent drug errors by providing patient counseling.

How brand-name manufacturers can get their drugs out the door faster.

NACDS thinks there's a good chance Medicare drug benefit will pass in 2003.

Changes in health benefits to retirees are expected to drive the growth of mail order.