From the Globe and Mail:
Smokers looking to kick the habit might chew nicotine gum or wear a patch sold over the counter in drug stores across Canada to give them an extra boost. But should they also be able to bypass the doctor and head to the drugstore if they're looking for something stronger?
A growing number of pharmacists across Canada think they should - and the idea is drawing sharp criticism from some drug-safety experts.
A few dozen Alberta pharmacists are currently authorized to write prescriptions for Zyban and Champix, the brand names of two common smoking-cessation drugs.
An advisory council to Ontario's health ministry is recommending that pharmacists in the province also be allowed to write prescriptions for smoking-cessation drugs. The recommendation is contained in a broader report that supports expanding the power of pharmacists to prescribe drugs for minor ailments, as well as to alter prescriptions or change dosages.
While Ontario's Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council admits that nicotine addiction is not a "minor ailment," it says pharmacists in the province should be able to write prescriptions for stop-smoking drugs as a way to improve access for those who want to quit. ...more
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Selling generic drugs in more competitive market could save millions: study
From the Canadian Press:
A more competitive generic drug market could save Canada's health-care system $800 million a year, the Competition Bureau says in a study released Tuesday.
Some of this money could be used to maintain or improve drug plans, reduce premiums or directly fund some pharmacist services, competition commissioner Sheridan Scott said in a Toronto speech.
"Progress is being made to get generic drugs at lower prices," Scott told the Economic Club in Toronto.
"We expect this amount (of savings) will climb significantly over the next three years, as some of the blockbuster brand-name drugs that came on to the market in the 1990s lose their patent protection and generic equivalents appear on the market."
The study, entitled Benefiting from Generic Drug Competition in Canada: The Way Forward, estimates the potential savings at more than $1 billion in coming years if changes are made to how generic drugs are paid for.
"Obtaining these savings, however, requires changes to allow the price Canadians pay for generic drugs to be based on the competitive price of the drug," Scott said. ...more
A more competitive generic drug market could save Canada's health-care system $800 million a year, the Competition Bureau says in a study released Tuesday.
Some of this money could be used to maintain or improve drug plans, reduce premiums or directly fund some pharmacist services, competition commissioner Sheridan Scott said in a Toronto speech.
"Progress is being made to get generic drugs at lower prices," Scott told the Economic Club in Toronto.
"We expect this amount (of savings) will climb significantly over the next three years, as some of the blockbuster brand-name drugs that came on to the market in the 1990s lose their patent protection and generic equivalents appear on the market."
The study, entitled Benefiting from Generic Drug Competition in Canada: The Way Forward, estimates the potential savings at more than $1 billion in coming years if changes are made to how generic drugs are paid for.
"Obtaining these savings, however, requires changes to allow the price Canadians pay for generic drugs to be based on the competitive price of the drug," Scott said. ...more
Vancouver pharmacy closed over methadone kickback claims
From the National Post:
A Downtown Eastside pharmacy has been told to close its doors amid allegations it provided cash kickbacks to addicts filling methadone prescriptions.
The AYC Pharmacy on East Hastings has had its licence suspended and was ordered to close indefinitely after an investigation by the College of Pharmacists, according to CBC News. The pharmacy must close by Dec. 1, but will operate on shortened hours until then so customers can find another place to fill prescriptions.
The college said the closure was a result of "medicine-management" issues involving patient safety, according to CBC.
The pharmacy is also being investigated by the Ministry of Health over allegations that it provided drug addicts with cash inducements to fill methadone prescriptions. Methadone is sometimes prescribed to drug users as an alternative to heroin.
B.C. pharmacies are paid $8.60 each time they dispense a drug. If pharmacies dispense methadone and supervise the patient as they take it, they receive an additional $7.70. ...more
A Downtown Eastside pharmacy has been told to close its doors amid allegations it provided cash kickbacks to addicts filling methadone prescriptions.
The AYC Pharmacy on East Hastings has had its licence suspended and was ordered to close indefinitely after an investigation by the College of Pharmacists, according to CBC News. The pharmacy must close by Dec. 1, but will operate on shortened hours until then so customers can find another place to fill prescriptions.
The college said the closure was a result of "medicine-management" issues involving patient safety, according to CBC.
The pharmacy is also being investigated by the Ministry of Health over allegations that it provided drug addicts with cash inducements to fill methadone prescriptions. Methadone is sometimes prescribed to drug users as an alternative to heroin.
B.C. pharmacies are paid $8.60 each time they dispense a drug. If pharmacies dispense methadone and supervise the patient as they take it, they receive an additional $7.70. ...more
Pharmacists' care drops blood pressure: study
From the Edmonton Journal:
Patients with high blood pressure who received enhanced care from pharmacists saw their blood pressure go down more than patients who received normal care from their pharmacists and family doctors, a new study has found.
The drop reduces a patient's risk for stroke by 30 per cent and risk of heart attack by 23 per cent, as long as the patient maintains the lowered blood pressure long-term, said Dr. Ross Tsuyuki, a pharmacist and the senior author of a paper published Monday in the journal, Archives of Internal Medicine.
"That's what we were really excited about -- a 30-per-cent reduction in stroke is quite a bit," Tsuyuki said.
He enlisted the help of pharmacists in 14 Medicine Shoppe pharmacies in urban Edmonton, Mill Woods, Sherwood Park and Spruce Grove, who identified 227 diabetic patients whose blood pressure was above the recommended 130/80 millimetres of mercury for diabetics. High blood pressure is anything above 140/90. ...more
Patients with high blood pressure who received enhanced care from pharmacists saw their blood pressure go down more than patients who received normal care from their pharmacists and family doctors, a new study has found.
The drop reduces a patient's risk for stroke by 30 per cent and risk of heart attack by 23 per cent, as long as the patient maintains the lowered blood pressure long-term, said Dr. Ross Tsuyuki, a pharmacist and the senior author of a paper published Monday in the journal, Archives of Internal Medicine.
"That's what we were really excited about -- a 30-per-cent reduction in stroke is quite a bit," Tsuyuki said.
He enlisted the help of pharmacists in 14 Medicine Shoppe pharmacies in urban Edmonton, Mill Woods, Sherwood Park and Spruce Grove, who identified 227 diabetic patients whose blood pressure was above the recommended 130/80 millimetres of mercury for diabetics. High blood pressure is anything above 140/90. ...more
Pharmacists eye greater responsibilities
From the Midland (Ont.) Mirror:
Ontario pharmacists could soon be able to fill and write prescriptions for minor sicknesses without a doctor’s order, recommends a report released Nov. 18 by the provincial health ministry.
Rather than having to go to a doctor or hospital for every small health issue, pharmacies could become the first stop for prescription extensions, drug adjustments and medication monitoring through pharmacist-ordered lab tests, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council has recommended.
The report also suggests pharmacists be allowed to:
• adjust prescriptions;
• extend some refills;
• order lab tests to ensure medications are working properly;
• teach people how to inject themselves with medications and use blood-testing devices;
• initiate smoking-cessation treatments, including the use of prescription addiction suppressors. ...more
Ontario pharmacists could soon be able to fill and write prescriptions for minor sicknesses without a doctor’s order, recommends a report released Nov. 18 by the provincial health ministry.
Rather than having to go to a doctor or hospital for every small health issue, pharmacies could become the first stop for prescription extensions, drug adjustments and medication monitoring through pharmacist-ordered lab tests, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council has recommended.
The report also suggests pharmacists be allowed to:
• adjust prescriptions;
• extend some refills;
• order lab tests to ensure medications are working properly;
• teach people how to inject themselves with medications and use blood-testing devices;
• initiate smoking-cessation treatments, including the use of prescription addiction suppressors. ...more
LGH gets high-tech meds dispenser
From the Montreal Gazette:
The Lakeshore General Hospital has a new member on its pharmaceutical team: a semi-automated medication distribution system, much like a high-tech vending machine, designed to not only save money but to reduce human error.
"This machine can package medication individually, without human manipulation. This way, surplus tablets can be reused, representing approximate savings of $150,000 per year," said Pierre Gendreau, head of the Pointe Claire hospital's pharmacy department.
Hospital spokesman Louis-Pascal Cyr said that under the old system, patient prescriptions were prepared by hand for four to six-day periods.
"And if a patient left before those periods were up, we'd have to throw away the leftover medication," he said.
"With the new system, patient medications are prepared in sealed packets on a daily basis," Cyr said. "And that translates into less loss of medication," he said. ...more
The Lakeshore General Hospital has a new member on its pharmaceutical team: a semi-automated medication distribution system, much like a high-tech vending machine, designed to not only save money but to reduce human error.
"This machine can package medication individually, without human manipulation. This way, surplus tablets can be reused, representing approximate savings of $150,000 per year," said Pierre Gendreau, head of the Pointe Claire hospital's pharmacy department.
Hospital spokesman Louis-Pascal Cyr said that under the old system, patient prescriptions were prepared by hand for four to six-day periods.
"And if a patient left before those periods were up, we'd have to throw away the leftover medication," he said.
"With the new system, patient medications are prepared in sealed packets on a daily basis," Cyr said. "And that translates into less loss of medication," he said. ...more
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Cleverer drug buying could save $800M a year, competition czar says
From the Toronto Star:
Canadian taxpayers, consumers and business could save up to $800 million a year if private and public sector plans changed the way they paid for generic drugs, Canada's consumer watchdog says.
Both the private sector and governments could start now using tools that encourage pharmacies to compete more aggressively for their business and ensure they pass on millions in savings they receive from generic drug makers, the competition bureau said.
Such strategies could include using more mail-order pharmacies, shopping around for the lowest drug-dispensing fees and negotiating group rates from preferred pharmacists, federal competition commissioner Sheridan Scott said in prepared notes for a speech to be delivered today.
"We believe Canadians deserve a health system that is safe and effective, but also delivers the maximum possible value to Canadians," Scott said in the notes.
The potential savings from more competitive pricing could climb to over $1 billion a year in coming years as several blockbuster patent drugs lose their patent protection, the federal competition bureau also said in a report issued today. ...more
Canadian taxpayers, consumers and business could save up to $800 million a year if private and public sector plans changed the way they paid for generic drugs, Canada's consumer watchdog says.
Both the private sector and governments could start now using tools that encourage pharmacies to compete more aggressively for their business and ensure they pass on millions in savings they receive from generic drug makers, the competition bureau said.
Such strategies could include using more mail-order pharmacies, shopping around for the lowest drug-dispensing fees and negotiating group rates from preferred pharmacists, federal competition commissioner Sheridan Scott said in prepared notes for a speech to be delivered today.
"We believe Canadians deserve a health system that is safe and effective, but also delivers the maximum possible value to Canadians," Scott said in the notes.
The potential savings from more competitive pricing could climb to over $1 billion a year in coming years as several blockbuster patent drugs lose their patent protection, the federal competition bureau also said in a report issued today. ...more
A new remedy for medicine
From the Ottawa Citizen:
You walk into a drug store to get your prescription renewed. It's a drug you've taken for years and you are seeing medical professionals about its use.
The pharmacist tells you the two-year prescription has expired. You can't get the drugs you need. That's not good.
Getting the prescription renewed means taking time from a general practitioner, or worse, a specialist who is being run off his or her feet by the problems of an aging population. There should be an easier way.
The Health Professions Regulatory Agency Council, an advisory group of seven members of the public who report to the provincial minister, says pharmacists should have the power to write prescriptions for minor health problems without a doctor's permission. And the pharmacy should be allowed to extend prescriptions, order lab tests and adjust drugs, the council said. In theory, this would cut the volume of patients visiting doctors or going to emergency wards. ...more
You walk into a drug store to get your prescription renewed. It's a drug you've taken for years and you are seeing medical professionals about its use.
The pharmacist tells you the two-year prescription has expired. You can't get the drugs you need. That's not good.
Getting the prescription renewed means taking time from a general practitioner, or worse, a specialist who is being run off his or her feet by the problems of an aging population. There should be an easier way.
The Health Professions Regulatory Agency Council, an advisory group of seven members of the public who report to the provincial minister, says pharmacists should have the power to write prescriptions for minor health problems without a doctor's permission. And the pharmacy should be allowed to extend prescriptions, order lab tests and adjust drugs, the council said. In theory, this would cut the volume of patients visiting doctors or going to emergency wards. ...more
Pharmacy workers reach deal with Rexall
I realize this article is quite old, but somehow I missed the resolution of this dispute, and thought maybe some of you did as well.
From the Edmonton Journal:
A tentative agreement has been reached between Daryl Katz's Rexall pharmacy group and the union representing 30 specialized pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.
The agreement was hammered out Sunday morning after an all-night marathon bargaining session and helped avert a pending strike set to start this morning. ...more
Pfizer pulls E.U. application to sell Viagra over the counter
Changing Viagra to OTC status has to be years away at least, but wouldn't it be a fascinating counseling challenge for the pharmacist in the local drugstore?
From MarketWatch:
Pfizer said it still thinks that Viagra at a 50-milligram dose is a suitable candidate for non-prescription supply through pharmacists.
But it's withdrawn its application after the European Medicines Agency's Medicinal Products for Human Use said it had some concerns.
"The withdrawal of the application will enable evaluation of further information and additional data that may be required to allow any future assessments under the centralized procedure," Pfizer said. ...more
Cases of asthma in Canada may be overdiagnosed by 30 per cent: study
From the Canadian Press:
Almost a third of adult Canadians diagnosed with asthma and taking medications to treat their wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath may not actually have the allergic respiratory condition at all, researchers say.
In a study of about 500 adults who had previously been told they have asthma, airway-function and other tests showed that about 30 per cent did not in fact have the disease, suggesting that asthma may be significantly overdiagnosed in Canada.
"What we think is happening ... is that if patients come to a physician complaining of shortness of breath or cough or wheeze, oftentimes the physician will assume that the diagnosis is asthma, and based on the patient's history and complaints prescribe medicines to treat asthma," lead investigator Dr. Shawn Aaron said from Ottawa.
"And what they won't do is order the appropriate diagnostic test to confirm asthma."
Aaron, head of respiratory medicine at Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa, said a doctor's suspicion that a patient has asthma should be followed up by confirmatory tests, including spirometry. ...more
Almost a third of adult Canadians diagnosed with asthma and taking medications to treat their wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath may not actually have the allergic respiratory condition at all, researchers say.
In a study of about 500 adults who had previously been told they have asthma, airway-function and other tests showed that about 30 per cent did not in fact have the disease, suggesting that asthma may be significantly overdiagnosed in Canada.
"What we think is happening ... is that if patients come to a physician complaining of shortness of breath or cough or wheeze, oftentimes the physician will assume that the diagnosis is asthma, and based on the patient's history and complaints prescribe medicines to treat asthma," lead investigator Dr. Shawn Aaron said from Ottawa.
"And what they won't do is order the appropriate diagnostic test to confirm asthma."
Aaron, head of respiratory medicine at Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa, said a doctor's suspicion that a patient has asthma should be followed up by confirmatory tests, including spirometry. ...more
Italian-Canadian Citizen of the Year
From the Hamilton Spectator:
Marita Zaffiro doesn't believe in just handing out pills to cure what ails you.
She believes in a community approach to health care, which includes making sure the needs of the multicultural denizens around her downtown pharmacy and across the city are met.
These are some of the reasons why the Hamilton-born pharmacist was named the Italian-Canadian Citizen of the Year by the Hamilton-based Sons of Italy organization on the weekend.
It will add to the long list of accolades Zaffiro has racked up, including being named Distinguished Citizen of the Year by the city of Hamilton in 1998 and one of the country's most influential pharmacists by the Canadian Pharmacists Association last year. ...more
Marita Zaffiro doesn't believe in just handing out pills to cure what ails you.
She believes in a community approach to health care, which includes making sure the needs of the multicultural denizens around her downtown pharmacy and across the city are met.
These are some of the reasons why the Hamilton-born pharmacist was named the Italian-Canadian Citizen of the Year by the Hamilton-based Sons of Italy organization on the weekend.
It will add to the long list of accolades Zaffiro has racked up, including being named Distinguished Citizen of the Year by the city of Hamilton in 1998 and one of the country's most influential pharmacists by the Canadian Pharmacists Association last year. ...more
Methadone could help cocaine addicts: study
From the Calgary Herald:
Methadone, a drug used for many years to treat heroin addiction, also appears to work well against cocaine addiction, a new Canadian study suggests.
Psychologist Francesco Leri of the University of Guelph has been making rats addicted to cocaine, and then treating them with methadone.
Most of the rats responded well, he says. They lost their powerful urge for cocaine and, in addition, their brains "re-set" themselves into the same pattern that existed before they first used cocaine.
"It can be done tomorrow with humans, and should be done tomorrow," Leri said.
That's because methadone--unlike some new drug -- already exists as a tested drug, with clear prescription rules and clinical staff trained in giving it out.
"There is an entire system that is already in place for the employment of methadone," that could be used for cocaine addicts, Leri said. ...more
Methadone, a drug used for many years to treat heroin addiction, also appears to work well against cocaine addiction, a new Canadian study suggests.
Psychologist Francesco Leri of the University of Guelph has been making rats addicted to cocaine, and then treating them with methadone.
Most of the rats responded well, he says. They lost their powerful urge for cocaine and, in addition, their brains "re-set" themselves into the same pattern that existed before they first used cocaine.
"It can be done tomorrow with humans, and should be done tomorrow," Leri said.
That's because methadone--unlike some new drug -- already exists as a tested drug, with clear prescription rules and clinical staff trained in giving it out.
"There is an entire system that is already in place for the employment of methadone," that could be used for cocaine addicts, Leri said. ...more
Monday, November 24, 2008
Skip the doctor's office, go right to the drugstore
I shudder when I read the first paragraph of this article. While I am in favour of pharmacist prescribing, we have to remember the difference between prescribing and diagnosing. Pharmacists aren't trained to diagnose most ailments. Our role needs to be the optimizers of drug therapy, but this is after a dignosis is made. I can adjust warfarin dosages at least as capably as a physician, but I can't diagnose any of the conditions that would lead to being on the drug such as a deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or atrial fibrillation for example.
From the Globe and Mail:
Should a nasty cold or poison ivy require a trip to the doctor to get a prescription? What about an earache, urinary tract infection or something as serious as a pre-existing heart problem?
Those are the questions many health professionals across Canada are grappling with as more provinces look to grant pharmacists greater power to prescribe drugs.
This week, an advisory council to Ontario's Health Ministry recommended that pharmacists in the province be allowed to write prescriptions for minor conditions, adjust dosages, extend prescriptions and order laboratory tests in some instances.
The move follows developments across the country to expand the role of pharmacists. ...more
Pharmacist Donates Kidney to Customer After Falling in Love
From ABC News:
Some romances build over dinner and flowers. This one blossomed over medication and dialysis.
A pharmacist in Kansas donated her kidney to a customer she fell in love with.
What began as a simple pharmacist-customer relationship turned into much more for Julie Wallace and Justin Lister, who struck up a friendship, then a romance that led to Wallace giving Lister a kidney.
When they met a little more than a year ago, Wallace, 46, was working as a pharmacist and manager at Dillon's grocery store pharmacy in McPherson, Kan., where Lister, 26, was dragging himself in to pick up a cocktail of prescriptions for his kidney disease.
"He kept coming into the pharmacy, getting all kinds of medication and just looking really bad," Wallace told ABCNews.com. "I told him that if there's anything I can ever do for him to let me know." ...more
Some romances build over dinner and flowers. This one blossomed over medication and dialysis.
A pharmacist in Kansas donated her kidney to a customer she fell in love with.
What began as a simple pharmacist-customer relationship turned into much more for Julie Wallace and Justin Lister, who struck up a friendship, then a romance that led to Wallace giving Lister a kidney.
When they met a little more than a year ago, Wallace, 46, was working as a pharmacist and manager at Dillon's grocery store pharmacy in McPherson, Kan., where Lister, 26, was dragging himself in to pick up a cocktail of prescriptions for his kidney disease.
"He kept coming into the pharmacy, getting all kinds of medication and just looking really bad," Wallace told ABCNews.com. "I told him that if there's anything I can ever do for him to let me know." ...more
Roche ordered to pay $13M to users of acne drug
From the Associated Press:
A jury has ordered drugmaker Roche to pay nearly $13 million to three patients who claim they developed a chronic bowel disorder because of the company's acne drug Accutane.
Roche's U.S. subsidiary Hoffman-La Roche said it would appeal the verdict.
The money, handed down in New Jersey State Superior Court on Thursday, will be split among the three Florida residents, their attorneys said in a statement. All three began using Accutane a decade ago to treat teenage acne. One of the group is expected to soon have his colon surgically removed while the others will require long-term drug therapy, the attorneys said.
The award is the latest stemming from a wave of lawsuits that accuse Roche of downplaying a link between Accutane and inflammatory bowel disease, which afflicts about 1.4 million people in the U.S. and Canada.
Accutane's warning label notes that the drug is "associated with" chronic bowel problems, but the company has argued that there is no direct connection between its drug and the disease. ...more
A jury has ordered drugmaker Roche to pay nearly $13 million to three patients who claim they developed a chronic bowel disorder because of the company's acne drug Accutane.
Roche's U.S. subsidiary Hoffman-La Roche said it would appeal the verdict.
The money, handed down in New Jersey State Superior Court on Thursday, will be split among the three Florida residents, their attorneys said in a statement. All three began using Accutane a decade ago to treat teenage acne. One of the group is expected to soon have his colon surgically removed while the others will require long-term drug therapy, the attorneys said.
The award is the latest stemming from a wave of lawsuits that accuse Roche of downplaying a link between Accutane and inflammatory bowel disease, which afflicts about 1.4 million people in the U.S. and Canada.
Accutane's warning label notes that the drug is "associated with" chronic bowel problems, but the company has argued that there is no direct connection between its drug and the disease. ...more
Indonesian AIDS patients face microchip monitoring
I realize this isn't really a pharmacy story, but it it heath/medical related and extremely troublesome so I thought I'd include it here.
From the Associated Press:
Lawmakers in Indonesia's remote province of Papua have thrown their support behind a controversial bill requiring some HIV/AIDS patients to be implanted with microchips — part of extreme efforts to monitor the disease.
Health workers and rights activists sharply criticized the plan Monday.
But legislator John Manangsang said by implanting small computer chips beneath the skin of "sexually aggressive" patients, authorities would be in a better position to identify, track and ultimately punish those who deliberately infect others with up to six months in jail or a $5,000 fine.
The technical and practical details still need to be hammered out, but the proposed legislation has received full backing from the provincial parliament and, if it gets a majority vote as expected, will be enacted next month, he and others said.
Indonesia is the world's fourth most populous country and has one of Asia's fastest growing HIV rates, with up to 290,000 infections out of 235 million people, fueled mainly by intravenous drug users and prostitution. ...more
When it comes to statins, don't believe the hype
From the Globe and Mail:
The headlines were dramatic and unequivocal:
"Cholesterol drug causes risk of heart attack to plummet" - Fox News.
"Cholesterol-fighting drugs show wider benefit" - The New York Times.
"Cholesterol drug cuts heart risk in healthy patients" - The Wall Street Journal.
The New York Times article summarized the exciting news in a front-page story saying that "millions more people could benefit from taking the cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins."
That's big medical/business news, because statins are already the bestselling drugs in the world, with sales in excess of $20-billion (U.S.).
Quoting some of the world's top heart researchers, media reports touted the importance of a blood test for C-reactive protein. That's because those benefiting from statins had high levels of CRP (a marker for inflammation) rather than high levels of LDL cholesterol, which is usually the criterion for statin prescription. ...more
The headlines were dramatic and unequivocal:
"Cholesterol drug causes risk of heart attack to plummet" - Fox News.
"Cholesterol-fighting drugs show wider benefit" - The New York Times.
"Cholesterol drug cuts heart risk in healthy patients" - The Wall Street Journal.
The New York Times article summarized the exciting news in a front-page story saying that "millions more people could benefit from taking the cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins."
That's big medical/business news, because statins are already the bestselling drugs in the world, with sales in excess of $20-billion (U.S.).
Quoting some of the world's top heart researchers, media reports touted the importance of a blood test for C-reactive protein. That's because those benefiting from statins had high levels of CRP (a marker for inflammation) rather than high levels of LDL cholesterol, which is usually the criterion for statin prescription. ...more
Health groups call for better drug coverage
From the Miramichi (NB) Leader:
When Ross Costain moved to New Brunswick from Prince Edward Island in April 2006, he went from having provincial health coverage to none at all.
Now he suddenly found himself paying around $759 per month for insulin and other measures he needs to cope with the Type 1 diabetes both he and his daughter Latisha have.
“That’s a house payment,” he said. “That’s a mortgage.”
As it stands, it’s enough medication and equipment to cover a small end table.
That cost includes testing strips, which Costain uses to test his blood sugar levels four times a day, to determine how much insulin his body needs to be injected at that particular moment.
With Latisha, who was diagnosed last September, it’s more complicated.
“I have to check her sugar very often,” he said.
As well, her blood sugar levels can change quickly, sometimes in as little as the 25 minutes it takes to ride the bus to school. ...more
When Ross Costain moved to New Brunswick from Prince Edward Island in April 2006, he went from having provincial health coverage to none at all.
Now he suddenly found himself paying around $759 per month for insulin and other measures he needs to cope with the Type 1 diabetes both he and his daughter Latisha have.
“That’s a house payment,” he said. “That’s a mortgage.”
As it stands, it’s enough medication and equipment to cover a small end table.
That cost includes testing strips, which Costain uses to test his blood sugar levels four times a day, to determine how much insulin his body needs to be injected at that particular moment.
With Latisha, who was diagnosed last September, it’s more complicated.
“I have to check her sugar very often,” he said.
As well, her blood sugar levels can change quickly, sometimes in as little as the 25 minutes it takes to ride the bus to school. ...more
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Doctors allege intimidation in raising drug warnings, investigation shows
From CBC News:
Two physicians who tried to warn about the high risk of serious side-effects of the Type 2 diabetes drug Avandia allege they were intimidated by the company that sells it, a CBC investigation revealed Wednesday.
Last year, a review published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a 43 per cent higher risk of heart attack among people taking Avandia, or rosiglitazone, compared to a control group, and 64 per cent more likely to die of cardiovascular problems.
Avandia was hailed as a breakthrough for blood-sugar control. It is designed to help sensitize the body to insulin.
Both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada have issued strong warnings as a result of the 2007 study. By that point, researchers were estimating thousands of people taking Avandia had died, given it had been on the market since 1999. In Canada in 2007, doctors had written more than a million prescriptions for Avandia, according to IMS Health Canada, an industry trend watcher.
In 2000, Dr. Mary Money, an internist from Hagerstown, Md., raised one of the earliest alarms about Avandia. Of 33 patients she put on the new drug, 20 went on to develop serious edema, or fluid retention — a symptom of heart failure. ...more
Two physicians who tried to warn about the high risk of serious side-effects of the Type 2 diabetes drug Avandia allege they were intimidated by the company that sells it, a CBC investigation revealed Wednesday.
Last year, a review published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a 43 per cent higher risk of heart attack among people taking Avandia, or rosiglitazone, compared to a control group, and 64 per cent more likely to die of cardiovascular problems.
Avandia was hailed as a breakthrough for blood-sugar control. It is designed to help sensitize the body to insulin.
Both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada have issued strong warnings as a result of the 2007 study. By that point, researchers were estimating thousands of people taking Avandia had died, given it had been on the market since 1999. In Canada in 2007, doctors had written more than a million prescriptions for Avandia, according to IMS Health Canada, an industry trend watcher.
In 2000, Dr. Mary Money, an internist from Hagerstown, Md., raised one of the earliest alarms about Avandia. Of 33 patients she put on the new drug, 20 went on to develop serious edema, or fluid retention — a symptom of heart failure. ...more
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Pet owners turning to mood altering meds to help their critters cope
From the Canadian Press:
With her pink tongue flapping out the side of her mouth, Winnie bounds across the living room, scoops up a tennis ball and proudly trots it back to her owner.
For the two-year-old mutt, life doesn't get much better than hanging out with Mandy Novak, a master who dishes out cold hot dogs and occasionally offers up her face for a slurp.
It's alone time that has filled Winnie with dread.
Late last year, the collie-Labrador mix, adopted from a shelter in October 2007, cried and paced nervously if she even sensed Novak was getting ready to leave for work.
When left on her own, Winnie marauded through the house gnawing on everything from wooden staircases to drywall.
"We came home and we found that she had eaten through the basement walls," said Novak, who lives in the Montreal suburb of Pincourt.
An animal behaviourist diagnosed Winnie with canine separation anxiety, and like more and more pet owners, Novak has turned to a mood-altering drug to help her dog cope. ...more
With her pink tongue flapping out the side of her mouth, Winnie bounds across the living room, scoops up a tennis ball and proudly trots it back to her owner.
For the two-year-old mutt, life doesn't get much better than hanging out with Mandy Novak, a master who dishes out cold hot dogs and occasionally offers up her face for a slurp.
It's alone time that has filled Winnie with dread.
Late last year, the collie-Labrador mix, adopted from a shelter in October 2007, cried and paced nervously if she even sensed Novak was getting ready to leave for work.
When left on her own, Winnie marauded through the house gnawing on everything from wooden staircases to drywall.
"We came home and we found that she had eaten through the basement walls," said Novak, who lives in the Montreal suburb of Pincourt.
An animal behaviourist diagnosed Winnie with canine separation anxiety, and like more and more pet owners, Novak has turned to a mood-altering drug to help her dog cope. ...more
Sunday, November 16, 2008
The sleepless epidemic
From the Globe and Mail:
For years, Stacie Fox feared the night. From the moment she went to bed, sleeplessness taunted her. Just as she began to drift off, it would jerk her awake again. As a result, she waded through her days with aching joints, swollen glands and a leaden heart. “I felt like I was 80,” says the 32-year-old actor from Burlington, Ont. “I felt like the whole world was going to end. My brain was in a fog.”
Using makeup and her acting skills to hide her exhaustion, she tried everything she could think of escape her insomnia. A dairy-free diet. Acupuncture. Massage therapy. Tai chi. Good sleep hygiene (no caffeine or alcohol, no TV in the bedroom). She even went to the Matrix Repatterning Centre in Aurora, Ont., where naturopathic doctors claimed to help “correct the imbalance in soft tissue, organs and bones.”
Her family doctor tested her thyroid, liver and kidneys, her levels of blood sugar and cortisol, the “stress hormone.” The results all came back normal. Then her doctor prescribed sleeping pills.
Imovane, a tiny, bitter blue piece of magic, sent her into a sweet, sustained slumber. Comfort, at last. She slept like a baby.
Many are loath to admit it, but more and more people both in Canada and the United States are fed up with punching the pillow until dawn. Consumption of sleeping pills has increased dramatically in the past five years. Prescriptions for zopiclone, the generic name for Imovane, rose 49 per cent from 2003 to last year, according to industry tracker IMS Health Canada, while those for all sedatives went up 15 per cent. ...more
For years, Stacie Fox feared the night. From the moment she went to bed, sleeplessness taunted her. Just as she began to drift off, it would jerk her awake again. As a result, she waded through her days with aching joints, swollen glands and a leaden heart. “I felt like I was 80,” says the 32-year-old actor from Burlington, Ont. “I felt like the whole world was going to end. My brain was in a fog.”
Using makeup and her acting skills to hide her exhaustion, she tried everything she could think of escape her insomnia. A dairy-free diet. Acupuncture. Massage therapy. Tai chi. Good sleep hygiene (no caffeine or alcohol, no TV in the bedroom). She even went to the Matrix Repatterning Centre in Aurora, Ont., where naturopathic doctors claimed to help “correct the imbalance in soft tissue, organs and bones.”
Her family doctor tested her thyroid, liver and kidneys, her levels of blood sugar and cortisol, the “stress hormone.” The results all came back normal. Then her doctor prescribed sleeping pills.
Imovane, a tiny, bitter blue piece of magic, sent her into a sweet, sustained slumber. Comfort, at last. She slept like a baby.
Many are loath to admit it, but more and more people both in Canada and the United States are fed up with punching the pillow until dawn. Consumption of sleeping pills has increased dramatically in the past five years. Prescriptions for zopiclone, the generic name for Imovane, rose 49 per cent from 2003 to last year, according to industry tracker IMS Health Canada, while those for all sedatives went up 15 per cent. ...more
HPV vaccine can protect men too
From Canada.com:
Soon girls may not be the only ones getting Gardasil injections.
Merck Frosst is moving ahead with plans to extend the use of its controversial Gardasil vaccine to boys and young men.
The cancer vaccine for women could be just as effective for men, Universite de Montreal professor and microbiologist Francois Coutlee said Thursday in a telephone interview at a scientific meeting in Nice, France.
Coutlee was part of the team reporting early results of a Merck-sponsored study showing that 90 per cent fewer men ages 16 to 26 years old developed genital warts and other lesions after receiving Gardasil, a vaccine that targets four human papillomavirus strains that can lead to cancer.
But HPV isn't just a problem for women, Coutlee said. In men, HPV can lead to genital warts, anal cancer, and penile cancer.
"The study is still ongoing, but we're relieved to know that it is as effective in men as it is in women," said Coutlee, who was involved in recruiting test subjects in Montreal. ...more
Soon girls may not be the only ones getting Gardasil injections.
Merck Frosst is moving ahead with plans to extend the use of its controversial Gardasil vaccine to boys and young men.
The cancer vaccine for women could be just as effective for men, Universite de Montreal professor and microbiologist Francois Coutlee said Thursday in a telephone interview at a scientific meeting in Nice, France.
Coutlee was part of the team reporting early results of a Merck-sponsored study showing that 90 per cent fewer men ages 16 to 26 years old developed genital warts and other lesions after receiving Gardasil, a vaccine that targets four human papillomavirus strains that can lead to cancer.
But HPV isn't just a problem for women, Coutlee said. In men, HPV can lead to genital warts, anal cancer, and penile cancer.
"The study is still ongoing, but we're relieved to know that it is as effective in men as it is in women," said Coutlee, who was involved in recruiting test subjects in Montreal. ...more
Test strips now covered for people with diabetes who use insulin
From the Charlottetown Guardian:
Islanders who use insulin to manage their diabetes will have assistance in covering the cost of their test strips beginning tomorrow, on World Diabetes Day.
Premier Robert Ghiz and Social Services and Seniors Minister Doug Currie announced today that all Islanders who are dependent on insulin will qualify to receive up to 100 test strips per month, with a monthly co-pay of $11.
The announcement affects close to 2,000 of the nearly 8,000 people with diabetes on P.E.I.
"We are extremely pleased to fulfil the promise this government made to insulin-dependent Islanders in the Throne Speech," said Premier Robert Ghiz. "This announcement is a $1.5 million investment in the health of Islanders."
Nineteen hundred people in Prince Edward Island use insulin and check their blood glucose levels using test strips and monitors. The strips are sold for one dollar each, while the monitors are provided at no charge by manufacturers. ...more
Islanders who use insulin to manage their diabetes will have assistance in covering the cost of their test strips beginning tomorrow, on World Diabetes Day.
Premier Robert Ghiz and Social Services and Seniors Minister Doug Currie announced today that all Islanders who are dependent on insulin will qualify to receive up to 100 test strips per month, with a monthly co-pay of $11.
The announcement affects close to 2,000 of the nearly 8,000 people with diabetes on P.E.I.
"We are extremely pleased to fulfil the promise this government made to insulin-dependent Islanders in the Throne Speech," said Premier Robert Ghiz. "This announcement is a $1.5 million investment in the health of Islanders."
Nineteen hundred people in Prince Edward Island use insulin and check their blood glucose levels using test strips and monitors. The strips are sold for one dollar each, while the monitors are provided at no charge by manufacturers. ...more
Peppermint oil, older drugs help treat IBS: review
From CBC News:
Older treatments for irritable bowel syndrome like peppermint oil safely help ease symptoms and should be used, a review suggests.
IBS is characterized by abdominal pain and discomfort accompanied by changes in bowel function, diarrhea, constipation or a combination of both, typically over months or years.
It is estimated to affect 13 to 20 per cent of Canadians, according to the Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.
In Canada and most western nations, IBS occurs more often in women. It can occur at any age, but often begins in adolescence or early adulthood. ...more
Older treatments for irritable bowel syndrome like peppermint oil safely help ease symptoms and should be used, a review suggests.
IBS is characterized by abdominal pain and discomfort accompanied by changes in bowel function, diarrhea, constipation or a combination of both, typically over months or years.
It is estimated to affect 13 to 20 per cent of Canadians, according to the Canadian Society of Intestinal Research.
In Canada and most western nations, IBS occurs more often in women. It can occur at any age, but often begins in adolescence or early adulthood. ...more
Breakthrough study finds simple blood test may detect heart disease
From the Globe and Mail:
Measuring certain proteins through a simple blood test may make heart disease easier to detect and a lot less deadly, according to a study published online Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
People with healthy LDL-cholesterol levels but elevated levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive proteins experienced a nearly 50-per-cent reduction in the risk of heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular death with a daily dose of a cholesterol-lowering statin drug, the study found.
The reduction in heart-disease risk among people who appear healthy and lack risk factors such as elevated cholesterol – which describes about half of those who experience heart disease – is such a significant finding that the drug trial was cut short in order to publish the results sooner.
The nearly 18,000 patients followed in the study had normal cholesterol levels and slightly elevated levels of C-reactive proteins – markers of inflammation that are known indicators of atherosclerosis, or blockage of the arteries.
The researchers suspected statin medications such as rosuvastatin would lower the risk of cardiovascular events in such patients, whose LDL-cholesterol levels were below 3.36 millimoles per litre, but were surprised by how well they worked. ...more
Measuring certain proteins through a simple blood test may make heart disease easier to detect and a lot less deadly, according to a study published online Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
People with healthy LDL-cholesterol levels but elevated levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive proteins experienced a nearly 50-per-cent reduction in the risk of heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular death with a daily dose of a cholesterol-lowering statin drug, the study found.
The reduction in heart-disease risk among people who appear healthy and lack risk factors such as elevated cholesterol – which describes about half of those who experience heart disease – is such a significant finding that the drug trial was cut short in order to publish the results sooner.
The nearly 18,000 patients followed in the study had normal cholesterol levels and slightly elevated levels of C-reactive proteins – markers of inflammation that are known indicators of atherosclerosis, or blockage of the arteries.
The researchers suspected statin medications such as rosuvastatin would lower the risk of cardiovascular events in such patients, whose LDL-cholesterol levels were below 3.36 millimoles per litre, but were surprised by how well they worked. ...more
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Internet drug peddlers raided in 9 countries
From Reuters:
Authorities in nine countries have raided businesses suspected of supplying medicines illegally over the Internet in an unprecedented global swoop coordinated by Interpol, officials said on Thursday.
The operation, codenamed Pangea, involved dozens of locations in Britain, Germany, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, Canada and the United States.
The raids on Wednesday mark the first time that such action has been taken on an international scale, an Interpol spokeswoman said.
Illicit sales of medicines via the Web are a growing problem, since many of the products are counterfeits of dubious quality and potentially dangerous.
Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which raided 12 residential and commercial premises in the crackdown, said illegal Internet sales posed a serious risk to public health.
"A medicine bought in this way has no guarantee that it is safe or that it is effective and can in fact be harmful," Danny Lee-Frost, head of operations, said in a statement. ...more
Authorities in nine countries have raided businesses suspected of supplying medicines illegally over the Internet in an unprecedented global swoop coordinated by Interpol, officials said on Thursday.
The operation, codenamed Pangea, involved dozens of locations in Britain, Germany, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, Canada and the United States.
The raids on Wednesday mark the first time that such action has been taken on an international scale, an Interpol spokeswoman said.
Illicit sales of medicines via the Web are a growing problem, since many of the products are counterfeits of dubious quality and potentially dangerous.
Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which raided 12 residential and commercial premises in the crackdown, said illegal Internet sales posed a serious risk to public health.
"A medicine bought in this way has no guarantee that it is safe or that it is effective and can in fact be harmful," Danny Lee-Frost, head of operations, said in a statement. ...more
OxyContin maker: Pills seized in C.B. weren’t the real deal
From the Halifax Chronicle Herald:
Representatives of the company that makes the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin flew to Sydney on Thursday to examine a vast quantity of seized pills that turned out to be knock-offs.
Police in Cape Breton seized 25,000 oxycodone tablets from a vehicle at a parking lot last week in what is considered the biggest bust of its kind in Atlantic Canada.
Staff Sgt. Paul Jobe said police are now confident the drugs, which have an estimated street value of about $700,000, are not of pharmaceutical grade.
Investigators met with drug-makers Purdue Pharma at police headquarters in Sydney where the company made a presentation on their manufacturing and security systems.
"It’s not the same quality they would produce," said Jobe. "They have a coating they put on their pills, they have a stamp they put on their pills, there’s a (certain) way they produce them."
The U.S.-based pharmaceutical company operates a facility in Pickering, Ont., and is the only maker of the brand OxyContin in Canada. There are eight other manufacturers of its generic form oxycodone, though none deal with the high milligram content found on the pills that were seized. ...more
Representatives of the company that makes the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin flew to Sydney on Thursday to examine a vast quantity of seized pills that turned out to be knock-offs.
Police in Cape Breton seized 25,000 oxycodone tablets from a vehicle at a parking lot last week in what is considered the biggest bust of its kind in Atlantic Canada.
Staff Sgt. Paul Jobe said police are now confident the drugs, which have an estimated street value of about $700,000, are not of pharmaceutical grade.
Investigators met with drug-makers Purdue Pharma at police headquarters in Sydney where the company made a presentation on their manufacturing and security systems.
"It’s not the same quality they would produce," said Jobe. "They have a coating they put on their pills, they have a stamp they put on their pills, there’s a (certain) way they produce them."
The U.S.-based pharmaceutical company operates a facility in Pickering, Ont., and is the only maker of the brand OxyContin in Canada. There are eight other manufacturers of its generic form oxycodone, though none deal with the high milligram content found on the pills that were seized. ...more
Union Yes?
From the Indianapolis Star:
With their white coats and six-figure salaries, pharmacists might seem like an unlikely group of card-carrying union members.
But around the country, 15,000 pharmacists, or about 6 percent of the U.S. total, belong to the Steelworkers, Teamsters and other unions, joining ranks with blue- collar workers who smelt aluminum, build tires and drive beer trucks.
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Most of the unionized pharmacists work in big industrial markets such as Pittsburgh and Chicago, along with smaller cities, such as Tampa, Fla., and Gary, Ind. No union pharmacists work in Central Indiana, according to the Indiana Pharmacists Alliance, a statewide trade group.
But that could change.
The United Steelworkers union is keeping a close eye on a massive mail-order pharmacy springing up in Boone County. The $150 million distribution center, being built by Medco Health Systems, will cover an area the size of six football fields when it opens next year. It eventually will employ 1,300 people, including hundreds of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who may need help negotiating contracts and addressing grievances. ...more
With their white coats and six-figure salaries, pharmacists might seem like an unlikely group of card-carrying union members.
But around the country, 15,000 pharmacists, or about 6 percent of the U.S. total, belong to the Steelworkers, Teamsters and other unions, joining ranks with blue- collar workers who smelt aluminum, build tires and drive beer trucks.
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Most of the unionized pharmacists work in big industrial markets such as Pittsburgh and Chicago, along with smaller cities, such as Tampa, Fla., and Gary, Ind. No union pharmacists work in Central Indiana, according to the Indiana Pharmacists Alliance, a statewide trade group.
But that could change.
The United Steelworkers union is keeping a close eye on a massive mail-order pharmacy springing up in Boone County. The $150 million distribution center, being built by Medco Health Systems, will cover an area the size of six football fields when it opens next year. It eventually will employ 1,300 people, including hundreds of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who may need help negotiating contracts and addressing grievances. ...more
Teaching boycott planned
From the Montreal Gazette:
Quebec pharmacists frustrated by a serious staffing shortage held a special meeting yesterday to vote on a series of pressure tactics they promise will not affect patients.
The shortage is expected to worsen, which means patients will suffer, warned Linda Vaillant, executive director of the Association des pharmaciens des établissements de santé du Québec.
"We may not be able to give chemotherapy to patients and we don't want to get there," Vaillant said.
About 1,200 pharmacists work in Quebec hospitals and other health-care establishments. But hospitals need another 200 pharmacists to properly serve patients, Vaillant said.
Hospital pharmacists regularly work 45-hour weeks, often covering 12 days in a row, she said.
"The pharmacist is like the goalie in hockey. He has to make sure to stop the puck, to catch the error, the drug interactions, and adjust the dose. There's potential for increased medical error because of the intensity of the workload," she said. ...more
Quebec pharmacists frustrated by a serious staffing shortage held a special meeting yesterday to vote on a series of pressure tactics they promise will not affect patients.
The shortage is expected to worsen, which means patients will suffer, warned Linda Vaillant, executive director of the Association des pharmaciens des établissements de santé du Québec.
"We may not be able to give chemotherapy to patients and we don't want to get there," Vaillant said.
About 1,200 pharmacists work in Quebec hospitals and other health-care establishments. But hospitals need another 200 pharmacists to properly serve patients, Vaillant said.
Hospital pharmacists regularly work 45-hour weeks, often covering 12 days in a row, she said.
"The pharmacist is like the goalie in hockey. He has to make sure to stop the puck, to catch the error, the drug interactions, and adjust the dose. There's potential for increased medical error because of the intensity of the workload," she said. ...more
P.E.I. pharmacists to be able to prescribe
I missed posting some articles while I took a break. I will attempt to catch up over the weekend. This one might have been one of the most interesting in the world of Canadian pharmacy.
From CBC News:
Prince Edward Island pharmacists will soon be given the authority to write prescriptions for their customers.
Changes to provincial legislation allowing pharmacists to renew some prescriptions are expected to be passed next month in the legislature.
Currently, when a prescription runs out and a person doesn't have a refill from the doctor, P.E.I. pharmacists can't do much except provide a few pills to tide the person over. The new legislation will change that.
"This is not prescribing something new; we are not diagnosing anything," Neala Auld, registrar of the P.E.I. Pharmacy Board, told CBC News Thursday.
Allowing pharmacists to renew some prescriptions will be a great convenience for patients, said Auld, particularly those without a family doctor.
"It puts patients in a very difficult position having to get a new prescription and wait maybe two or three hours in outpatients for something that easily could be addressed at the pharmacy level," she said. ...more
Ban diabetes drug Avandia: consumer group to FDA
From CBC News:
The diabetes drug Avandia should be banned over its risks of heart and liver damage, a U.S. consumer group urged.
In a petition filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday, the group Public Citizen called for the Type 2 diabetes drug, whose generic name is rosiglitazone, to be pulled from the market.
Last week, the American Diabetes Association and a European counterpart unanimously advised doctors against using Avandia in updated treatment guidelines.
"The FDA is in possession of clear, unequivocal evidence that (Avandia) causes a wide variety of toxicities," Public Citizen said in its petition.
"Many of these are life-threatening, such as heart attacks, heart failure (and) liver failure."
In November 2007, GlaxoSmithKline Inc., the manufacturer of rosiglitazone, updated its prescribing information in consultation with Health Canada after a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reported a 43 per cent higher risk of heart attack for those taking rosiglitazone compared to people taking other diabetes drugs or no diabetes medication at all. ...more
The diabetes drug Avandia should be banned over its risks of heart and liver damage, a U.S. consumer group urged.
In a petition filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday, the group Public Citizen called for the Type 2 diabetes drug, whose generic name is rosiglitazone, to be pulled from the market.
Last week, the American Diabetes Association and a European counterpart unanimously advised doctors against using Avandia in updated treatment guidelines.
"The FDA is in possession of clear, unequivocal evidence that (Avandia) causes a wide variety of toxicities," Public Citizen said in its petition.
"Many of these are life-threatening, such as heart attacks, heart failure (and) liver failure."
In November 2007, GlaxoSmithKline Inc., the manufacturer of rosiglitazone, updated its prescribing information in consultation with Health Canada after a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reported a 43 per cent higher risk of heart attack for those taking rosiglitazone compared to people taking other diabetes drugs or no diabetes medication at all. ...more
Rare Treatment Is Reported to Cure AIDS Patient
From the New York Times:
Doctors in Berlin are reporting that they cured a man of AIDS by giving him transplanted blood stem cells from a person naturally resistant to the virus.
But while the case has novel medical implications, experts say it will be of little immediate use in treating AIDS. Top American researchers called the treatment unthinkable for the millions infected in Africa and impractical even for insured patients in top research hospitals.
“It’s very nice, and it’s not even surprising,” said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “But it’s just off the table of practicality.”
The patient, a 42-year-old American resident in Germany, also has leukemia, which justified the high risk of a stem-cell transplant. Such transplants require wiping out a patient’s immune system, including bone marrow, with radiation and drugs; 10 to 30 percent of those getting them die.
“Frankly, I’d rather take the medicine,” said Dr. Robert C. Gallo, director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, referring to antiretroviral drugs. ..more
Doctors in Berlin are reporting that they cured a man of AIDS by giving him transplanted blood stem cells from a person naturally resistant to the virus.
But while the case has novel medical implications, experts say it will be of little immediate use in treating AIDS. Top American researchers called the treatment unthinkable for the millions infected in Africa and impractical even for insured patients in top research hospitals.
“It’s very nice, and it’s not even surprising,” said Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “But it’s just off the table of practicality.”
The patient, a 42-year-old American resident in Germany, also has leukemia, which justified the high risk of a stem-cell transplant. Such transplants require wiping out a patient’s immune system, including bone marrow, with radiation and drugs; 10 to 30 percent of those getting them die.
“Frankly, I’d rather take the medicine,” said Dr. Robert C. Gallo, director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, referring to antiretroviral drugs. ..more
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Statins: the Aspirin of the 21st century?
From CBC News:
They're the best-selling family of drugs of all time, with annual worldwide sales estimated at more than $20 billion. Every year, Canadian doctors write more than 12 million prescriptions for statins, making them the most-prescribed drugs in the country. They're in a class of drugs that has proven very effective at lowering cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of heart attacks.
The possible effectiveness of statins is so great that surprised researchers reported in November 2008 they have stopped a four-year study two years early in order to present their findings as soon as possible on the drugs' benefits to patients.
The study, which followed nearly 18,000 patients from 27 different countries, found the strongest evidence yet that people with high levels of a particular protein are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease. It also found that the risk dropped by nearly half for patients treated with statins.
All the patients had normal levels of cholesterol (LDL-c) and high levels of hs-CRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein) — previously suspected, but not confirmed, to be a critical indicator of heart problems — and as such were not receiving any treatment for cardiovascular disease. ...more
They're the best-selling family of drugs of all time, with annual worldwide sales estimated at more than $20 billion. Every year, Canadian doctors write more than 12 million prescriptions for statins, making them the most-prescribed drugs in the country. They're in a class of drugs that has proven very effective at lowering cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of heart attacks.
The possible effectiveness of statins is so great that surprised researchers reported in November 2008 they have stopped a four-year study two years early in order to present their findings as soon as possible on the drugs' benefits to patients.
The study, which followed nearly 18,000 patients from 27 different countries, found the strongest evidence yet that people with high levels of a particular protein are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease. It also found that the risk dropped by nearly half for patients treated with statins.
All the patients had normal levels of cholesterol (LDL-c) and high levels of hs-CRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein) — previously suspected, but not confirmed, to be a critical indicator of heart problems — and as such were not receiving any treatment for cardiovascular disease. ...more
Woman blames drug company for contributing to heart attack
From the Waterloo (Ont.) Record:
Trudy Metzger used to call the little white pill she took daily her miracle drug.
The 38-year-old Elmira woman took the drug to relieve the uncomfortable symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.
Today, she believes the drug, Zelnorm, contributed to the massive heart attack she suffered two years ago at age 36.
"I could have died," Metzger said yesterday.
The mother of five is the representative plaintiff in a $125-million class-action lawsuit against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc., the Quebec-based manufacturer of the drug.
None of the allegations in the lawsuit have been proven in court.
Silvie Letendra, spokesperson for Novartis, declined to comment.
"Since this matter is now before the courts, Novartis cannot comment," she said in an e-mail. ...more
Trudy Metzger used to call the little white pill she took daily her miracle drug.
The 38-year-old Elmira woman took the drug to relieve the uncomfortable symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.
Today, she believes the drug, Zelnorm, contributed to the massive heart attack she suffered two years ago at age 36.
"I could have died," Metzger said yesterday.
The mother of five is the representative plaintiff in a $125-million class-action lawsuit against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc., the Quebec-based manufacturer of the drug.
None of the allegations in the lawsuit have been proven in court.
Silvie Letendra, spokesperson for Novartis, declined to comment.
"Since this matter is now before the courts, Novartis cannot comment," she said in an e-mail. ...more
C.B. cops make big Oxy bust
From the Halifax Chronicle Herald:
Some 25,000 OxyContin pills were seized in a downtown parking lot Friday night in what the acting chief of Cape Breton Regional Police says could be the biggest bust of the prescription drug in Atlantic Canada.
Plastic baggies filled with the powerful pills lined a table at police headquarters Monday as Staff Sgt. Paul Jobe told reporters about the takedown.
Members of the street crime unit staked out a car in a parking lot along the Esplanade on Friday and moved in when the suspects got out, he said. A small amount of marijuana was also seized.
Christopher John Allingham of Eastern Passage and Todd Douglas Miller of the Montreal area appeared briefly in Sydney provincial court on Monday....more
Some 25,000 OxyContin pills were seized in a downtown parking lot Friday night in what the acting chief of Cape Breton Regional Police says could be the biggest bust of the prescription drug in Atlantic Canada.
Plastic baggies filled with the powerful pills lined a table at police headquarters Monday as Staff Sgt. Paul Jobe told reporters about the takedown.
Members of the street crime unit staked out a car in a parking lot along the Esplanade on Friday and moved in when the suspects got out, he said. A small amount of marijuana was also seized.
Christopher John Allingham of Eastern Passage and Todd Douglas Miller of the Montreal area appeared briefly in Sydney provincial court on Monday....more
AIDS vaccine developed in Ont. nears human trials
From Canada.com:
An experimental vaccine aimed at combating the HIV/AIDS virus has been developed by a researcher at the University of Western Ontario in London and is ready to be put through a key testing phase, the university announced Wednesday.
The vaccine, developed by virologist Dr. Chil-Yong Kang, will now go through toxicology tests to ensure it can safely be injected into humans.
Toxicology trials using animals will begin in a matter of days at a research facility in the United States with results expected in approximately three months, Kang said.
Phase 1 human clinical trials could begin in early spring.
Unlike other vaccines, which have used only a small amount of HIV's genetic material, Kang said his vaccine uses a whole dead HIV-1 virus, a technique Jonas Salk used in the polio vaccine.
"We have engineered a virus in such a way that it can be produced in larger quantities in shorter periods of time and it is also non-pathogenic. In other words, it doesn't cause the disease," Kang said. "We have tested animals and they do respond to the vaccine and we now have to try it in humans."
The vaccine will be tested in individuals who are HIV-positive, but don't yet have AIDS symptoms, Kang said....more
An experimental vaccine aimed at combating the HIV/AIDS virus has been developed by a researcher at the University of Western Ontario in London and is ready to be put through a key testing phase, the university announced Wednesday.
The vaccine, developed by virologist Dr. Chil-Yong Kang, will now go through toxicology tests to ensure it can safely be injected into humans.
Toxicology trials using animals will begin in a matter of days at a research facility in the United States with results expected in approximately three months, Kang said.
Phase 1 human clinical trials could begin in early spring.
Unlike other vaccines, which have used only a small amount of HIV's genetic material, Kang said his vaccine uses a whole dead HIV-1 virus, a technique Jonas Salk used in the polio vaccine.
"We have engineered a virus in such a way that it can be produced in larger quantities in shorter periods of time and it is also non-pathogenic. In other words, it doesn't cause the disease," Kang said. "We have tested animals and they do respond to the vaccine and we now have to try it in humans."
The vaccine will be tested in individuals who are HIV-positive, but don't yet have AIDS symptoms, Kang said....more
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Let us renew meds, save cash: N.L. pharmacists
From CBC News:
Pharmacists in Newfoundland and Labrador are asking the provincial government for authority to extend drug prescriptions, on grounds it would improve patient care and save money.
The pharmacists say millions of dollars are being unnecessarily spent because too many patients head to emergency rooms for treatment or prescriptions, when better alternatives could be made available.
Wayne Morris, president of the Newfoundland Council of Community Pharmacy Owners, said he sees about two or three people each day who must either face not taking medications or heading to hospitals for prescriptions.
The consequences, he said, can be serious.
"If somebody's on insulin and can't get it for a week or 10 days, [then] basically what you have to realize is that they are going to end up in hospital," said Morris, who owns a pharmacy in Grand Falls-Windsor. ...more
Pharmacists in Newfoundland and Labrador are asking the provincial government for authority to extend drug prescriptions, on grounds it would improve patient care and save money.
The pharmacists say millions of dollars are being unnecessarily spent because too many patients head to emergency rooms for treatment or prescriptions, when better alternatives could be made available.
Wayne Morris, president of the Newfoundland Council of Community Pharmacy Owners, said he sees about two or three people each day who must either face not taking medications or heading to hospitals for prescriptions.
The consequences, he said, can be serious.
"If somebody's on insulin and can't get it for a week or 10 days, [then] basically what you have to realize is that they are going to end up in hospital," said Morris, who owns a pharmacy in Grand Falls-Windsor. ...more
Telepharmacy service instituted in Barry's Bay hospital
From Barry's Bay (Ont.) This Week:
The shortage of health care professionals across the province has made it difficult for small rural hospitals to offer the services needed. For the past 18 months, for example, St. Francis Memorial Hospital in Barry’s Bay has been trying to find a pharmacist, without luck.
But it has now solved the problem by connecting with Northern Pharmacy Limited (a division of The North West Company), which offers telepharmacy services.
“A small hospital can safely operate a medication storage and distribution system for their patients under the management of a registered nurse,” says Joan Kuiack, Director of Patient Care Services. “However, the addition of a pharmacist offers an enhanced quality of care to our patients.”
A pharmacist has the expertise to look at the whole patient, his or her disease and relate the effectiveness of the medication they are receiving to their progress, she adds.
The hospital first contacted Kevin McDonald, manager of the hospital pharmacy telepharmacy program at Northern Pharmacy, about a year ago, but decided to try to organize a partnership with Renfrew Victoria Hospital for services of a pharmacist. ...more
The shortage of health care professionals across the province has made it difficult for small rural hospitals to offer the services needed. For the past 18 months, for example, St. Francis Memorial Hospital in Barry’s Bay has been trying to find a pharmacist, without luck.
But it has now solved the problem by connecting with Northern Pharmacy Limited (a division of The North West Company), which offers telepharmacy services.
“A small hospital can safely operate a medication storage and distribution system for their patients under the management of a registered nurse,” says Joan Kuiack, Director of Patient Care Services. “However, the addition of a pharmacist offers an enhanced quality of care to our patients.”
A pharmacist has the expertise to look at the whole patient, his or her disease and relate the effectiveness of the medication they are receiving to their progress, she adds.
The hospital first contacted Kevin McDonald, manager of the hospital pharmacy telepharmacy program at Northern Pharmacy, about a year ago, but decided to try to organize a partnership with Renfrew Victoria Hospital for services of a pharmacist. ...more
Pharmacy school nearly ready
From the Waterloo (Ont.) Record:
Dr. Jake Thiessen walks through a muddy parking lot in a busy construction site and steps into a signature building in the city's core -- the University of Waterloo's school of pharmacy.
At King and Victoria streets, the $52-million building is the most visible and tangible sign of progress in the City of Kitchener's long-running campaign to bolster the downtown.
Thiessen is the founding director of the school, and these days he walks around the site with a feeling of exhilaration.
"It is a terrific thing to be part of something from the ground up," he said yesterday during a tour of the building. "I was blessed with the privilege of starting with a blank slate and dreaming of what could be." ...more
Dr. Jake Thiessen walks through a muddy parking lot in a busy construction site and steps into a signature building in the city's core -- the University of Waterloo's school of pharmacy.
At King and Victoria streets, the $52-million building is the most visible and tangible sign of progress in the City of Kitchener's long-running campaign to bolster the downtown.
Thiessen is the founding director of the school, and these days he walks around the site with a feeling of exhilaration.
"It is a terrific thing to be part of something from the ground up," he said yesterday during a tour of the building. "I was blessed with the privilege of starting with a blank slate and dreaming of what could be." ...more
Drugged-out seniors a prescription for disaster
From the Toronto Star:
They are the drugged-out generation, and they're not who you think they are.
They're 80. And 85 and 90 and 95 – overmedicated seniors clogging emergency departments, blocking hospital beds and sicker than they have any reason to be.
The Number 1 drug users in North America, outside of patients in long-term care facilities, are women over the age of 65. Twelve per cent are on 10 or more meds, sometimes up to 20 or more drugs; 23 per cent take at least five drugs. In long-term care, seniors are on six to eight medications, on average. Fifteen per cent of seniors admitted to hospital are suffering drug side effects. It's not uncommon to find seniors dizzy and dotty from being prescribed so many drugs.
"You'd fall down, too, if you were on so many drugs," says Dr. William Dalziel, a prominent Ottawa geriatrician.
Typically, overmedicated seniors have been seen by numerous specialists who have prescribed various medications to treat a host of chronic ailments – high blood pressure, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, cancer – but there hasn't been any oversight by a geriatrician skilled in looking at the big picture and assessing contra-indications and side effects. Ask any doctor with expertise in seniors what their top health concerns are and they all cite overmedication. ...more
They are the drugged-out generation, and they're not who you think they are.
They're 80. And 85 and 90 and 95 – overmedicated seniors clogging emergency departments, blocking hospital beds and sicker than they have any reason to be.
The Number 1 drug users in North America, outside of patients in long-term care facilities, are women over the age of 65. Twelve per cent are on 10 or more meds, sometimes up to 20 or more drugs; 23 per cent take at least five drugs. In long-term care, seniors are on six to eight medications, on average. Fifteen per cent of seniors admitted to hospital are suffering drug side effects. It's not uncommon to find seniors dizzy and dotty from being prescribed so many drugs.
"You'd fall down, too, if you were on so many drugs," says Dr. William Dalziel, a prominent Ottawa geriatrician.
Typically, overmedicated seniors have been seen by numerous specialists who have prescribed various medications to treat a host of chronic ailments – high blood pressure, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, cancer – but there hasn't been any oversight by a geriatrician skilled in looking at the big picture and assessing contra-indications and side effects. Ask any doctor with expertise in seniors what their top health concerns are and they all cite overmedication. ...more
Shoppers' new beauty emporium takes on Sephora
From the Ottawa Citizen:
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation has chosen Ottawa to launch its first high-end, multi-service beauty store in Canada. Murale features a cocktail of services, from a pharmacy that exudes Scandinavian style to a "bar" focusing on beautiful skin and trim eyebrows.
Launched on the weekend at Place d'Orléans Shopping Centre, Murale is the brainchild of Shoppers Drug Mart president and CEO Jurgen Schreiber, who wanted to combine beauty and dermatological products with professional services in a sleek space.
Among its 30 services Murale offers purifying facial and body treatments, and a skin analysis section called Beauty Metrix where a "skin diagnostic tool" measures a customer's skin damage, skin quality and moisture level, while a consultant will suggest topical creams to meet the customer's needs. ...more
Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation has chosen Ottawa to launch its first high-end, multi-service beauty store in Canada. Murale features a cocktail of services, from a pharmacy that exudes Scandinavian style to a "bar" focusing on beautiful skin and trim eyebrows.
Launched on the weekend at Place d'Orléans Shopping Centre, Murale is the brainchild of Shoppers Drug Mart president and CEO Jurgen Schreiber, who wanted to combine beauty and dermatological products with professional services in a sleek space.
Among its 30 services Murale offers purifying facial and body treatments, and a skin analysis section called Beauty Metrix where a "skin diagnostic tool" measures a customer's skin damage, skin quality and moisture level, while a consultant will suggest topical creams to meet the customer's needs. ...more
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Pharmacists face Rexall lockout
From the Edmonton Sun:
A potential move by Rexall that would see dozens of highly specialized pharmacists locked out could have negative impacts on the patients they serve, some terminally ill, one expert says.
The Health Sciences Association of Alberta, the organization representing the workers, says the pharmacy giant has applied to the Labour Relations Board to lock out pharmacists and pharmacy technicians working at outpatient pharmacies at the U of A and Royal Alexandra hospitals, following a breakdown in contract negotiations.
Elisabeth Ballermann, HSAA president, says pharmacists working for Rexall have historically been paid on par with their counterparts working for the provincial health board.
However, things turned sour when the non-Rexall employees got a significant pay increase, which Rexall is not prepared to match.
"The message was pretty blunt at the bargaining table that Rexall doesn't feel that they're making enough of a profit. They are, in fact, making a profit, they just don't think they're making a big enough profit," Ballermann said, adding the gap will be in the neighbourhood of $8,000 over two years for workers. ...more
A potential move by Rexall that would see dozens of highly specialized pharmacists locked out could have negative impacts on the patients they serve, some terminally ill, one expert says.
The Health Sciences Association of Alberta, the organization representing the workers, says the pharmacy giant has applied to the Labour Relations Board to lock out pharmacists and pharmacy technicians working at outpatient pharmacies at the U of A and Royal Alexandra hospitals, following a breakdown in contract negotiations.
Elisabeth Ballermann, HSAA president, says pharmacists working for Rexall have historically been paid on par with their counterparts working for the provincial health board.
However, things turned sour when the non-Rexall employees got a significant pay increase, which Rexall is not prepared to match.
"The message was pretty blunt at the bargaining table that Rexall doesn't feel that they're making enough of a profit. They are, in fact, making a profit, they just don't think they're making a big enough profit," Ballermann said, adding the gap will be in the neighbourhood of $8,000 over two years for workers. ...more
Windsor's independent pharmacists caught in drug war crossfire
From the Windsor Star:
The mural of an old-fashioned, small-town apothecary on the window of Steve Gavrilidis's South Windsor pharmacy reflects the personal service he provides inside -- his best, perhaps only, defence against the rapid expansion of competing national drugstore chains.
Like hundreds of independent pharmacists across the province, Gavrilidis finds himself caught in the crossfire of Ontario's drug war -- the battle for market supremacy being waged between Shoppers Drug Mart and upstart Rexall.
"They're chasing each other and nipping at each other's heels, taking away from guys like me," said Gavrilidis. "Everybody wants a piece of the pie and the pie is getting smaller."
The Pharma Health independent pharmacy has found a niche providing the personal touch. Pharmacist Steve Gavrilidis assists customers in the comfort
Like Burger King and McDonald's at the height of the burger wars, the two drugstore chains are rapidly expanding across the province, acquiring independent outlets and opening new stores in each other's shadows. In Goderich earlier this month, Rexall and Shoppers both opened stores in the span of a week.
"Rexall is out to get Shoppers' market share and that's the bottom line," said retired University of Windsor business professor Alfie Morgan. "It's a competitive battle between two giants." ...more
The mural of an old-fashioned, small-town apothecary on the window of Steve Gavrilidis's South Windsor pharmacy reflects the personal service he provides inside -- his best, perhaps only, defence against the rapid expansion of competing national drugstore chains.
Like hundreds of independent pharmacists across the province, Gavrilidis finds himself caught in the crossfire of Ontario's drug war -- the battle for market supremacy being waged between Shoppers Drug Mart and upstart Rexall.
"They're chasing each other and nipping at each other's heels, taking away from guys like me," said Gavrilidis. "Everybody wants a piece of the pie and the pie is getting smaller."
The Pharma Health independent pharmacy has found a niche providing the personal touch. Pharmacist Steve Gavrilidis assists customers in the comfort
Like Burger King and McDonald's at the height of the burger wars, the two drugstore chains are rapidly expanding across the province, acquiring independent outlets and opening new stores in each other's shadows. In Goderich earlier this month, Rexall and Shoppers both opened stores in the span of a week.
"Rexall is out to get Shoppers' market share and that's the bottom line," said retired University of Windsor business professor Alfie Morgan. "It's a competitive battle between two giants." ...more
A New Age Of Statins?
From Forbes:
A new study could lead millions more Americans to take cholesterol-lowering drugs and generate billions in sales for AstraZeneca, which funded it. But first comes a furious debate.
The study, called Jupiter, gave either AstraZeneca's Crestor or placebo to 18,000 patients who received bad scores on a little-known blood test for C-reactive protein (CRP) that is thought to measure inflammation in the arteries. Patients who took Crestor were half as likely to have heart attacks, strokes or operations to open clogged arteries as those getting placebo, an effect that ranks among the best results seen with the two-decade old class of cholesterol drugs called statins, of which Crestor is the most potent.
"It takes prevention to a new level because it applies to a whole group of patients who would not get a statin today," says Douglas Weaver, president of the American College of cardiology. In a statement, Elizabeth Nabel, head of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, says adding CRP tests to those for blood pressure and cholesterol "could identify millions more adults for whom treatments with statins appears to lower the risk of heart attack." ..more
A new study could lead millions more Americans to take cholesterol-lowering drugs and generate billions in sales for AstraZeneca, which funded it. But first comes a furious debate.
The study, called Jupiter, gave either AstraZeneca's Crestor or placebo to 18,000 patients who received bad scores on a little-known blood test for C-reactive protein (CRP) that is thought to measure inflammation in the arteries. Patients who took Crestor were half as likely to have heart attacks, strokes or operations to open clogged arteries as those getting placebo, an effect that ranks among the best results seen with the two-decade old class of cholesterol drugs called statins, of which Crestor is the most potent.
"It takes prevention to a new level because it applies to a whole group of patients who would not get a statin today," says Douglas Weaver, president of the American College of cardiology. In a statement, Elizabeth Nabel, head of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, says adding CRP tests to those for blood pressure and cholesterol "could identify millions more adults for whom treatments with statins appears to lower the risk of heart attack." ..more
Review of QU college by Canadian body complete
I don't exactly understand the reason that Qatar University wants Canadian accreditation. I suspect this is to enhance their credibility. But could it also lead to their students having an easier path to Canadian licensure than other foreign graduates? Are any other foreign universities planning to ask the CCAPP to inspect their programs?
From the Qatar Gulf Times:
Qatar University’s College of Pharmacy has completed a accreditation review conducted by the Canadian Council for Accreditation of Pharmacy Programmes, the agency for accrediting pharmacy schools in Canada.
“We are the first international programme to undergo an accreditation review by CCAPP,” College of Pharmacy dean Peter Jewesson noted, adding that the same standards and guidelines were applied to the college’s programmes as for Canadian programmes.
The accreditation process was conducted from October 19 to 22 only months after the College of Pharmacy was elevated from Pharmacy Programme following the approval of the QU Board of Regents under the chairmanship of HH the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Advance documentation was provided to the agency in July of this year. ...more
Shoppers Drug Mart Q3 profit climbs 15%
From the Financial Post:
Third-quarter profit at Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. climbed 15% as the retailer of cosmetics, vitamins and prescription drugs built out its store network and increased its sales in house-branded goods.
Net income at Canada's largest drug store chain rose to $162.5-million, or 75¢ per share, compared with $141.7-million, or 65¢, in the same period a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson First call were predicting profit of 75¢.
Sales rose 9.8% to $2.79-billion and same-store sales, a retailing bellwether which looks at sales at stores open at least a year, rose 5%, not including tobacco sales. Prescription same-store sales rose 5.2% and merchandise sales were up 4.8%.
This was the 18th consecutive quarter of increased profit at Shoppers, which increased its retail space by 12.6% in the period.
"No real surprises," said analyst Bob Gibson of Octagon Capital, which was reassuring, he said, given recent turmoil in the more discretionary end of the retailing sector. The analyst said he was considering moving his rating on the shares up to a buy from a hold given its recent decline in share price. Prior to yesterday's close, Shoppers' shares had lost 10% of their value this year. ...more
Third-quarter profit at Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. climbed 15% as the retailer of cosmetics, vitamins and prescription drugs built out its store network and increased its sales in house-branded goods.
Net income at Canada's largest drug store chain rose to $162.5-million, or 75¢ per share, compared with $141.7-million, or 65¢, in the same period a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson First call were predicting profit of 75¢.
Sales rose 9.8% to $2.79-billion and same-store sales, a retailing bellwether which looks at sales at stores open at least a year, rose 5%, not including tobacco sales. Prescription same-store sales rose 5.2% and merchandise sales were up 4.8%.
This was the 18th consecutive quarter of increased profit at Shoppers, which increased its retail space by 12.6% in the period.
"No real surprises," said analyst Bob Gibson of Octagon Capital, which was reassuring, he said, given recent turmoil in the more discretionary end of the retailing sector. The analyst said he was considering moving his rating on the shares up to a buy from a hold given its recent decline in share price. Prior to yesterday's close, Shoppers' shares had lost 10% of their value this year. ...more
Downtown Walgreens to focus on HIV/AIDS
I think it's pretty interesting that some of the bigger pharmacy chains are starting to develop niche markets. Typically this has been the domain of independent pharmacies.
From the Indianapolis Star:
Walgreens is reaching out to people with HIV and AIDS by creating a hub store in Downtown Indianapolis to meet their needs.
Staffed with a pharmacist trained to help HIV patients, the store reflects the nationwide drugstore chain's new strategy of providing customized services to those with certain diseases.
"The company is changing from most people's image of Walgreens, where you have four brick walls, Snickers bars and greeting cards and school supplies," said Bruce Hinshaw, health-care market leader for Walgreen Co. for the Indianapolis/ Central Indiana market. "It's always been a health-care company, and I think Walgreens is saying, 'That's our strength. Let's go back to our core strength.' "
In New Castle, this approach has translated into a pharmacy that offers compounding services. Later, Indianapolis could see a store with a specialty in diabetes care, Hinshaw said. Other Walgreens stores around the country specialize in services for those with respiratory problems, tumors or cancer, or rheumatoid arthritis. ...more
Thursday, November 06, 2008
SCOC upholds blood-thinning drug patent
From Canada.com:
The Supreme Court of Canada blocked the sale of a generic version of a popular blood-thinning drug in a ruling Thursday that reinforced patent protection to encourage brand-name pharmaceutical companies and other businesses to invest time and money into research.
The court unanimously dismissed generic drug-maker Apotex's bid to quash a Canadian patent for best-seller Plavix, which expires in 2012.
The ruling settles an intellectual property dispute over the validity of secondary patents that give drug companies protection, not only for their original inventions, but for an entire family of possible chemical compounds that encourage scientists to go back to the laboratory to improve a product. ...more
The Supreme Court of Canada blocked the sale of a generic version of a popular blood-thinning drug in a ruling Thursday that reinforced patent protection to encourage brand-name pharmaceutical companies and other businesses to invest time and money into research.
The court unanimously dismissed generic drug-maker Apotex's bid to quash a Canadian patent for best-seller Plavix, which expires in 2012.
The ruling settles an intellectual property dispute over the validity of secondary patents that give drug companies protection, not only for their original inventions, but for an entire family of possible chemical compounds that encourage scientists to go back to the laboratory to improve a product. ...more
Testosterone patch may put pleasure back in post-menopause sex
From the Globe and Mail:
The male sex hormone testosterone may help restore sexual pleasure in some post-menopausal women, much as erectile dysfunction drugs have given some men back their sex lives, according to research published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
In an international study of 814 women who were not using estrogen therapy, those who received 300 milligrams of testosterone a day via a patch on the stomach for a year reported an increase of about one-and-a-half more satisfying sexual episodes a month, when corrected for a placebo effect.
Lead researcher Susan Davis says she conducted the study to determine whether testosterone was a suitable alternative for menopausal women who have stopped taking estrogen therapy because of studies linking it to health risks, including breast cancer.
The study, a two-year double-blind clinical trial of women from Canada, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Sweden who reported enjoying sex only 50 per cent of time, was financed by Procter and Gamble Pharmaceuticals, the makers of a testosterone patch currently available in Europe. ...more
The male sex hormone testosterone may help restore sexual pleasure in some post-menopausal women, much as erectile dysfunction drugs have given some men back their sex lives, according to research published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
In an international study of 814 women who were not using estrogen therapy, those who received 300 milligrams of testosterone a day via a patch on the stomach for a year reported an increase of about one-and-a-half more satisfying sexual episodes a month, when corrected for a placebo effect.
Lead researcher Susan Davis says she conducted the study to determine whether testosterone was a suitable alternative for menopausal women who have stopped taking estrogen therapy because of studies linking it to health risks, including breast cancer.
The study, a two-year double-blind clinical trial of women from Canada, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Sweden who reported enjoying sex only 50 per cent of time, was financed by Procter and Gamble Pharmaceuticals, the makers of a testosterone patch currently available in Europe. ...more
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Just what the druggist ordered
From the Saint John (NB) Telegraph Journal:
It's about to become much easier for New Brunswickers to get the medications they need without waiting for the OK from their doctors.
Changes to the province's Pharmacy Act come into effect tomorrow, significantly expanding the role of the pharmacist in replacing, renewing and, in some cases, issuing prescriptions.
"It's going to improve access for people who need their medications," said Lisa Zwicker, a pharmacist in Saint John.
"And it will save steps for us. Lots of times we have to stop and call or fax a doctor and wait to hear back in order to fill a prescription. It will eliminate that step. I don't think it will make our jobs any busier, but I think it will be better for everyone."
New Brunswick's 700 pharmacists fill more than nine million prescriptions every year.
Bill Veniot, registrar with New Brunswick's Pharmaceutical Society, said the new legislation finally recognizes the extensive training and experience of pharmacists.
"We're experts in drug therapy," Veniot said at a news conference in Fredericton on Tuesday.
"It's natural that we take on more authority with respect to prescribing certain medications." ...more
It's about to become much easier for New Brunswickers to get the medications they need without waiting for the OK from their doctors.
Changes to the province's Pharmacy Act come into effect tomorrow, significantly expanding the role of the pharmacist in replacing, renewing and, in some cases, issuing prescriptions.
"It's going to improve access for people who need their medications," said Lisa Zwicker, a pharmacist in Saint John.
"And it will save steps for us. Lots of times we have to stop and call or fax a doctor and wait to hear back in order to fill a prescription. It will eliminate that step. I don't think it will make our jobs any busier, but I think it will be better for everyone."
New Brunswick's 700 pharmacists fill more than nine million prescriptions every year.
Bill Veniot, registrar with New Brunswick's Pharmaceutical Society, said the new legislation finally recognizes the extensive training and experience of pharmacists.
"We're experts in drug therapy," Veniot said at a news conference in Fredericton on Tuesday.
"It's natural that we take on more authority with respect to prescribing certain medications." ...more
Ottawa to revive supplement safety bill
From the Globe and Mail:
Health Minister Tony Clement plans to reintroduce controversial legislation giving the federal government more oversight regarding the quality and safety of supplements, vitamins and other natural health products.
A spokeswoman for the minister, Laryssa Waler, said yesterday that Ottawa intends to go forward with new safety proposals to cover the booming and poorly regulated supplement field, but didn't offer a timeline.
The decision is likely to cause another pitched battle within the natural health products industry, where one major player, Jamieson Laboratories, yesterday issued a public call for stricter regulations.
It argues that current rules are so lax that Ottawa can't even order harmful products off store shelves and is only able to issue toothless health advisories.
The earlier legislation, known as bill C-51, prompted a vociferous campaign by some smaller health-products companies that said it would lead to government restrictions on the types of supplements available on the market. The bill died when the election was called. ...more
Health Minister Tony Clement plans to reintroduce controversial legislation giving the federal government more oversight regarding the quality and safety of supplements, vitamins and other natural health products.
A spokeswoman for the minister, Laryssa Waler, said yesterday that Ottawa intends to go forward with new safety proposals to cover the booming and poorly regulated supplement field, but didn't offer a timeline.
The decision is likely to cause another pitched battle within the natural health products industry, where one major player, Jamieson Laboratories, yesterday issued a public call for stricter regulations.
It argues that current rules are so lax that Ottawa can't even order harmful products off store shelves and is only able to issue toothless health advisories.
The earlier legislation, known as bill C-51, prompted a vociferous campaign by some smaller health-products companies that said it would lead to government restrictions on the types of supplements available on the market. The bill died when the election was called. ...more
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Pharmacists OK'd to replace, extend and renew prescriptions
From the Fredericton (NB) Daily Gleaner:
New Brunswickers seeking prescribed medications may no longer have to consult their family doctor, visit the emergency room or go to after-hours clinics.
Due to an amendment made last May to the province's Pharmacy Act, pharmacists now have the power to replace, extend and renew existing prescriptions. They can also issue new prescriptions for pre-existing conditions in emergency situations, as well as alter prescriptions to accommodate special needs.
Similar initiatives are underway in the United Kingdom and across Canada, including in Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island.
"I think this is a good news story for New Brunswickers," said Bill Veniot, registrar with the New Brunswick Pharmaceutical Society, at a news conference.
"It's going to provide more access and better access to medications where some patients have had difficulties in getting medication. This will alleviate some of those things." ...more
New Brunswickers seeking prescribed medications may no longer have to consult their family doctor, visit the emergency room or go to after-hours clinics.
Due to an amendment made last May to the province's Pharmacy Act, pharmacists now have the power to replace, extend and renew existing prescriptions. They can also issue new prescriptions for pre-existing conditions in emergency situations, as well as alter prescriptions to accommodate special needs.
Similar initiatives are underway in the United Kingdom and across Canada, including in Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island.
"I think this is a good news story for New Brunswickers," said Bill Veniot, registrar with the New Brunswick Pharmaceutical Society, at a news conference.
"It's going to provide more access and better access to medications where some patients have had difficulties in getting medication. This will alleviate some of those things." ...more
Fort Erie pharmacist is tonight's speaker at Port High Authors Series
From the Welland (Ont.) Tribune:
Sherry Torkos almost fell over at the thought of becoming an author.
It wasn't that she didn't want to.
It was just that she had never thought about the possibility.
Now a decade into it, the Fort Erie pharmacist seems to have come to terms nicely with her second career.
Torkos is the second author to visit Port High as part of the school's authors series this year.
She has written several books in the past decade. The latest is The Canadian Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine.
Tonight she will talk about the importance of proper diet in maintaining health, as well as the role of health supplements can play. ...more
Sherry Torkos almost fell over at the thought of becoming an author.
It wasn't that she didn't want to.
It was just that she had never thought about the possibility.
Now a decade into it, the Fort Erie pharmacist seems to have come to terms nicely with her second career.
Torkos is the second author to visit Port High as part of the school's authors series this year.
She has written several books in the past decade. The latest is The Canadian Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine.
Tonight she will talk about the importance of proper diet in maintaining health, as well as the role of health supplements can play. ...more
Safety Information Regarding Overdosage of Venlafaxine HCl Extended-Release Capsules
From Health Canada:
Health Canada, and the manufacturers of venlafaxine extended-release (XR) capsules wish to advise Canadians that the prescribing information for venlafaxine XR is being updated to include safety information about the risks of overdose.
Venlafaxine is in a class of medicines called serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and is used to treat depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety disorder (or social phobia) and panic disorder. Venlafaxine XR is sold in Canada under several brand names, including Effexor XR, Co Venlafaxine XR, Gen-Venlafaxine XR, Riva-Venlafaxine XR, Novo Venlafaxine XR, PMS- Venlafaxine XR, Ratio-Venlafaxine XR, Sandoz Venlafaxine XR.
For Health Professionals
For the Public
Health Canada, and the manufacturers of venlafaxine extended-release (XR) capsules wish to advise Canadians that the prescribing information for venlafaxine XR is being updated to include safety information about the risks of overdose.
Venlafaxine is in a class of medicines called serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and is used to treat depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety disorder (or social phobia) and panic disorder. Venlafaxine XR is sold in Canada under several brand names, including Effexor XR, Co Venlafaxine XR, Gen-Venlafaxine XR, Riva-Venlafaxine XR, Novo Venlafaxine XR, PMS- Venlafaxine XR, Ratio-Venlafaxine XR, Sandoz Venlafaxine XR.
For Health Professionals
For the Public
Monday, October 27, 2008
Epilepsy drug could help cure Alzheimer's
From the Calgary Herald:
Researchers at the University of B.C. have discovered that a drug commonly used to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder significantly reduces brain plaque in mice with Alzheimer's disease.
The discovery, if replicated in humans, could lead to major new treatments for the debilitating brain-wasting disease. "If this works . . . it's going to benefit every patient with Alzheimer's disease," said UBC psychiatry professor Weihong Song, who led the study.
Song and his colleagues took mice genetically modified to exhibit Alzheimer's-like symptoms and then treated them with valproic acid (VPA), a compound usually used as a mood stabilizer or anti-convulsant.
They found the drug reduced the formation of plaque on the mice's brains, which in turn led to less brain-cell death and improved performance on memory tests. "It's very, very significant," said Song.
"There's a striking inhibition of the plaque formation." ...more
Researchers at the University of B.C. have discovered that a drug commonly used to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder significantly reduces brain plaque in mice with Alzheimer's disease.
The discovery, if replicated in humans, could lead to major new treatments for the debilitating brain-wasting disease. "If this works . . . it's going to benefit every patient with Alzheimer's disease," said UBC psychiatry professor Weihong Song, who led the study.
Song and his colleagues took mice genetically modified to exhibit Alzheimer's-like symptoms and then treated them with valproic acid (VPA), a compound usually used as a mood stabilizer or anti-convulsant.
They found the drug reduced the formation of plaque on the mice's brains, which in turn led to less brain-cell death and improved performance on memory tests. "It's very, very significant," said Song.
"There's a striking inhibition of the plaque formation." ...more
Leukemia drug may stop progression of MS symptoms
From CTV News:
There is new hope for patients who suffer from multiple sclerosis, as a drug initially developed to treat a form of leukemia may stop the progression of the debilitating neurological disease.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge have found that alemtuzumab not only halts the advancement of multiple sclerosis (MS), but it may also restore some function lost by patients.
MS is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack the insulation that covers nerve fibres in the central nervous system.
This causes the nerves to malfunction and then die off, which results in a number of physical and intellectual disabilities.
In the study, the drug reduced the risk of developing disabilities by 71 per cent compared to the common drug treatment for MS, interferon beta-1a. ...more
There is new hope for patients who suffer from multiple sclerosis, as a drug initially developed to treat a form of leukemia may stop the progression of the debilitating neurological disease.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge have found that alemtuzumab not only halts the advancement of multiple sclerosis (MS), but it may also restore some function lost by patients.
MS is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack the insulation that covers nerve fibres in the central nervous system.
This causes the nerves to malfunction and then die off, which results in a number of physical and intellectual disabilities.
In the study, the drug reduced the risk of developing disabilities by 71 per cent compared to the common drug treatment for MS, interferon beta-1a. ...more
Full house greets 'faith-based' pharmacy
From the Washington Times:
Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy, one of fewer than a dozen pharmacies in the country that refuse to stock any kind of birth control, cigarettes, pornography or condoms, opened with a Catholic bishop's blessing and sprinklings of holy water Tuesday in Chantilly.
About 100 people, half of them children, crammed into the DMC Pharmacy in Sully Place Shopping Center to hear Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde preach about "transforming hearts through health care" amid boxes and bottles of Clearasil, Neutrogena and St. Ives Apricot Scrub.
"The most fundamental illness in our contemporary society is a pervasive disrespect for the intrinsic worth and dignity of every human person, whose life begins at conception," the bishop said.
Applauding the pharmacy for providing "a faith-based, family-friendly, pro-life environment," he called the opening of the DMC Pharmacy "a historic moment."
The store, just off Route 50 in one of Northern Virginia's busiest corridors, refuses to dispense birth control on the grounds that it destroys a developing life and that the hormones in birth-control pills are dangerous to a woman's health. Catholic doctrine forbids the use of artificial birth control. ...more
Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy, one of fewer than a dozen pharmacies in the country that refuse to stock any kind of birth control, cigarettes, pornography or condoms, opened with a Catholic bishop's blessing and sprinklings of holy water Tuesday in Chantilly.
About 100 people, half of them children, crammed into the DMC Pharmacy in Sully Place Shopping Center to hear Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde preach about "transforming hearts through health care" amid boxes and bottles of Clearasil, Neutrogena and St. Ives Apricot Scrub.
"The most fundamental illness in our contemporary society is a pervasive disrespect for the intrinsic worth and dignity of every human person, whose life begins at conception," the bishop said.
Applauding the pharmacy for providing "a faith-based, family-friendly, pro-life environment," he called the opening of the DMC Pharmacy "a historic moment."
The store, just off Route 50 in one of Northern Virginia's busiest corridors, refuses to dispense birth control on the grounds that it destroys a developing life and that the hormones in birth-control pills are dangerous to a woman's health. Catholic doctrine forbids the use of artificial birth control. ...more
Millions of Flu Vaccines May Go Unused
From ABC News:
Flu shot regulations in states restricting pharmacies from freely administering flu shots may keep many people from getting immunized and leave millions of vaccines unused, many health care professionals say.
As the CDC looks to expand the scope of immunizations to the largest number of people yet, states that require citizens to get a prescription to receive the flu vaccine by pharmacists are finding it difficult to accommodate the increasing numbers who are recommended for vaccinations.
The policy will turn many people away from getting a flu shot, said Dr. William Schaffner, professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University.
"Over the past decade, pharmacists have shown that they are very important partners in providing influenza vaccinations to the population," Schaffner said. "Having a physician's prescription is a barrier to more effective delivery of immunizations." ...more
Flu shot regulations in states restricting pharmacies from freely administering flu shots may keep many people from getting immunized and leave millions of vaccines unused, many health care professionals say.
As the CDC looks to expand the scope of immunizations to the largest number of people yet, states that require citizens to get a prescription to receive the flu vaccine by pharmacists are finding it difficult to accommodate the increasing numbers who are recommended for vaccinations.
The policy will turn many people away from getting a flu shot, said Dr. William Schaffner, professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University.
"Over the past decade, pharmacists have shown that they are very important partners in providing influenza vaccinations to the population," Schaffner said. "Having a physician's prescription is a barrier to more effective delivery of immunizations." ...more
National Pharmacy Association Insurance Covers Pharmacists For Flu Vaccinations, UK
From Medical News Today:
NPA Insurance has confirmed that individual pharmacists who have taken out the £99 NPA Insurance policy or pharmacy owners who are NPA members, providing a flu vaccination service, are indemnified.
Glyn Walduck, Head of NPA Insurance said: "It has been highlighted to us that some insurance providers are charging an additional premium for pharmacists wishing to carry out flu vaccinations. NPA Insurance would like to confirm that NPA members are covered by their NPA Insurance policy to provide a flu vaccination service. That cover also extends to any pharmacist who is employed or engaged (locum) by a member to provide the service so long as the pharmacist has been trained and approved. Locum pharmacists who have the £99 NPA Insurance policy will also be covered." ...more
NPA Insurance has confirmed that individual pharmacists who have taken out the £99 NPA Insurance policy or pharmacy owners who are NPA members, providing a flu vaccination service, are indemnified.
Glyn Walduck, Head of NPA Insurance said: "It has been highlighted to us that some insurance providers are charging an additional premium for pharmacists wishing to carry out flu vaccinations. NPA Insurance would like to confirm that NPA members are covered by their NPA Insurance policy to provide a flu vaccination service. That cover also extends to any pharmacist who is employed or engaged (locum) by a member to provide the service so long as the pharmacist has been trained and approved. Locum pharmacists who have the £99 NPA Insurance policy will also be covered." ...more
Unused drugs costing NHS millions
From BBC News:
As much as £1 worth of every £20 spent on prescription drugs is never used by patients, according to the NHS.
A Scottish GP has called for a recycling scheme to stop hundreds of millions of pounds worth of unused drugs going to waste.
Some unused drugs are returned to pharmacists and incinerated, others are just binned by patients.
Dr James Douglas wants unopened medicines to be offered to patients who need them for free.
Drugs are often thrown away because clinicians over-prescribe or because patients fail to take their medicines. ...more
As much as £1 worth of every £20 spent on prescription drugs is never used by patients, according to the NHS.
A Scottish GP has called for a recycling scheme to stop hundreds of millions of pounds worth of unused drugs going to waste.
Some unused drugs are returned to pharmacists and incinerated, others are just binned by patients.
Dr James Douglas wants unopened medicines to be offered to patients who need them for free.
Drugs are often thrown away because clinicians over-prescribe or because patients fail to take their medicines. ...more
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Group lobbies to change N.D pharmacy law
I didn't realize that these types of ownership restrictions still existed anywhere in the States. I wish the pharmacists luck, but they are fighting a battle that was lost a long time ago in most jurisdictions.
From the Grand Forks (ND) Herald:
Spencer Clairmont cringed when he saw a television ad a few weeks ago featuring people saying they were surprised that they could buy cheaper prescription drugs in Minnesota or other states than North Dakota.
The ad says a 45-year-old North Dakota law that requires drug stores to be majority-owned by pharmacists is keeping drug prices artificially high. If the state Legislature would overturn the law, it argues, residents would see cheaper prices because stores such as Wal-Mart, Target or grocery stores such as Hugo’s would be allowed to sell prescriptions.
The advertising campaign, which touts Wal-Mart’s $4 prescriptions, is the work of a group called North Dakotans for Affordable Health Care, funded mostly by Wal-Mart and Walgreen’s.
“Their advertisement saying they’re the cheapest doesn’t square with reality,” said the 56-year-old Clairmont. He and his wife, Bev, both pharmacists, own Walhalla Prescription Store in this Pembina County town of about 1,000, 100 miles north of Grand Forks. ...more
Half of U.S. doctors often prescribe placebos
From MSNBC:
About half of American doctors in a new survey say they regularly give patients placebo treatments — usually drugs or vitamins that won't really help their condition.
And many of these doctors are not honest with their patients about what they are doing, the survey found.
That contradicts advice from the American Medical Association, which recommends doctors use treatments with the full knowledge of their patients.
"It's a disturbing finding," said Franklin G. Miller, director of the research ethics program at the U.S. National Institutes Health and one of the study authors. "There is an element of deception here which is contrary to the principle of informed consent."
The study was being published online in Friday's issue of BMJ, formerly the British Medical Journal.
Placebos as defined in the survey went beyond the typical sugar pill commonly used in medical studies. A placebo was any treatment that wouldn't necessarily help the patient. ...more
About half of American doctors in a new survey say they regularly give patients placebo treatments — usually drugs or vitamins that won't really help their condition.
And many of these doctors are not honest with their patients about what they are doing, the survey found.
That contradicts advice from the American Medical Association, which recommends doctors use treatments with the full knowledge of their patients.
"It's a disturbing finding," said Franklin G. Miller, director of the research ethics program at the U.S. National Institutes Health and one of the study authors. "There is an element of deception here which is contrary to the principle of informed consent."
The study was being published online in Friday's issue of BMJ, formerly the British Medical Journal.
Placebos as defined in the survey went beyond the typical sugar pill commonly used in medical studies. A placebo was any treatment that wouldn't necessarily help the patient. ...more
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
New Remedies to Treat Blood Clots Are Near
From the Wall Street Journal:
Several big drug makers are in a neck-and-neck race to introduce new drugs for treating blood clots, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes, killing as many as a million people a year.
The prize is a chance at a piece of the blood-clot treatment market, which analysts estimate could be worth as much as €15 billion, or about $20 billion, by 2016.
[Treat Blood Clots]
Drugs currently used to prevent blood clots, also known as thrombosis, are effective and sell well but have problems. One popular treatment is difficult to dose and introduces risks when taken with other medicines and some foods. Another is an injectable, making long-term therapy difficult.
Five pharmaceutical companies are working on new treatments for blood clots. Three drugs -- developed by Bayer AG in partnerships with Johnson & Johnson, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, and Pfizer Inc. in partnership with Bristol Myers-Squibb Co. -- are now in the late phases of clinical testing.
The new drugs are taken by mouth, which makes them easier to use, their dosing is less troublesome, and they need no laboratory monitoring. They are also potentially more effective than existing treatments. The drug developed by Bayer and J&J has shown superior efficacy compared with standard therapy in a recent study. ...more
Several big drug makers are in a neck-and-neck race to introduce new drugs for treating blood clots, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes, killing as many as a million people a year.
The prize is a chance at a piece of the blood-clot treatment market, which analysts estimate could be worth as much as €15 billion, or about $20 billion, by 2016.
[Treat Blood Clots]
Drugs currently used to prevent blood clots, also known as thrombosis, are effective and sell well but have problems. One popular treatment is difficult to dose and introduces risks when taken with other medicines and some foods. Another is an injectable, making long-term therapy difficult.
Five pharmaceutical companies are working on new treatments for blood clots. Three drugs -- developed by Bayer AG in partnerships with Johnson & Johnson, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, and Pfizer Inc. in partnership with Bristol Myers-Squibb Co. -- are now in the late phases of clinical testing.
The new drugs are taken by mouth, which makes them easier to use, their dosing is less troublesome, and they need no laboratory monitoring. They are also potentially more effective than existing treatments. The drug developed by Bayer and J&J has shown superior efficacy compared with standard therapy in a recent study. ...more
Secret, double life of a Walgreens druggist
This is a fascinating tale of a pharmacist-turned-lawyer who exposed a major corporation's fraudulent practices.
From the Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Neil Thompson arrived at Walgreens eight years ago with a pharmacist's calm demeanor, a disarming smile and an impeccable résumé that dated back to his boyhood at the family drugstore in south Minneapolis.
What Walgreens didn't know was that its new part-time employee had an ulterior motive: to expose the way pharmacies sometimes broke the law to make money. Thompson was so determined to stop the cheating that at age 45, he became a lawyer.
Starting in 2005, Thompson worked as a government-sanctioned undercover investigator, poring through records in the back offices of Walgreens stores. Little by little, he and a co-employee developed a case that Walgreens was overcharging Medicaid by millions.
Late last month, the secret lawsuit that Thompson and pharmacist Dan Bieurance filed against Walgreens became public. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that the pharmacy giant would pay $9.9 million to settle the case. The company said it had changed its procedures to end the overbilling. For turning in their employer, Thompson and Bieurance stand to gain $483,000 each. ...more
Inside an affiliate spam program for pharmaceuticals
I thought this was an interesting bit of insight into the world of internet pharmacy affiliates.
From ZDNet.com:
Bargaining with your health doesn’t just mean you’re heading for a shorter life expectancy, but also, increases the chances that you will either get scammed in the process, or have to pay more in the long-term while dealing with the health issues arising from using expired pharmaceutical with unverifiable origins, you bargained for at the first place.
Just like vendors of rogue security software and system utilities software contributing to the increase of cybercrime activities due to the high payout rates enticing the affiliate network’s participants to spam, engage in blackhat SEO and SQL inject sites to redirect the visitors to the scam domains, pharmaceutical affiliate programs do exactly the same by allowing spamming, blackhat SEO, botnet traffic through redirects, and due to high amounts of money they make - directly advertise the scam sites on the major search engines.
Affiliate Pharmaceutical ProgramOut of the close to a hundred (100) unique pharmaceutical spam affiliate programs currently operating, let’s find out what is driving the increasing levels of pharmaceutical spam by taking an inside peek at such a program operating since 2003, whose advertisements speak for themselves in terms of revenues - “Around 50 Americans (85% of their sales) purchase pharmaceuticals from their affiliates on an hourly basis“. ...more
Monday, October 20, 2008
Plan B is coming out from behind the counter
From the Edmonton Sun:
The emergency contraceptive drug known as Plan B could be coming out from behind the pharmacy counter.
The National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities wants to change the way the drug is sold, allowing it to be freely available on drug store shelves instead of behind the pharmacy counter.
Currently, women who want to buy the drug have to ask pharmacy staff, a condition critics have contended may discourage some from using it to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
The change would see Plan B stocked on shelves near the dispensary, so purchasers could easily ask for advice on its use if they need it. ...more
The emergency contraceptive drug known as Plan B could be coming out from behind the pharmacy counter.
The National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities wants to change the way the drug is sold, allowing it to be freely available on drug store shelves instead of behind the pharmacy counter.
Currently, women who want to buy the drug have to ask pharmacy staff, a condition critics have contended may discourage some from using it to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
The change would see Plan B stocked on shelves near the dispensary, so purchasers could easily ask for advice on its use if they need it. ...more
High fracture risk seen in heart failure patients
From the CBC News:
People with heart failure have an elevated risk for bone fractures, particularly a broken hip, and doctors should be on the lookout in these patients for signs of osteoporosis, Canadian researchers said Monday.
Among 16,294 patients with heart disease in Alberta, those treated for heart failure were four times as likely to have a fracture in the next year as those with other types of heart disease, the researchers report in the journal Circulation.
The heart failure patients were six times as likely as the others to sustain a hip fracture, the researchers added.
It was the first study to indicate heart failure patients are at greater risk for bone-weakening osteoporosis, said Dr. Justin Ezekowitz, director of the Heart Function Clinic at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, who helped lead the research.
"This intersection is important because orthopedic fracture, especially hip fracture, is very debilitating. On top of a very debilitating disease such as heart failure, this is a very big problem," Ezekowitz said in a telephone interview. ...more
People with heart failure have an elevated risk for bone fractures, particularly a broken hip, and doctors should be on the lookout in these patients for signs of osteoporosis, Canadian researchers said Monday.
Among 16,294 patients with heart disease in Alberta, those treated for heart failure were four times as likely to have a fracture in the next year as those with other types of heart disease, the researchers report in the journal Circulation.
The heart failure patients were six times as likely as the others to sustain a hip fracture, the researchers added.
It was the first study to indicate heart failure patients are at greater risk for bone-weakening osteoporosis, said Dr. Justin Ezekowitz, director of the Heart Function Clinic at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, who helped lead the research.
"This intersection is important because orthopedic fracture, especially hip fracture, is very debilitating. On top of a very debilitating disease such as heart failure, this is a very big problem," Ezekowitz said in a telephone interview. ...more
Sunday, October 19, 2008
New treatment works
From the Vancouver Province:
A legal painkiller called Dilaudid is more effective in treating serious heroin addiction than methadone therapy, according to a groundbreaking Canadian study.
The North American Opiate Medication Initiative, also known as NAOMI, examined the effectiveness of prescription heroin on hard-core addicts in Vancouver and Montreal, who have repeatedly failed treatment in the past.
Over a 12- to 15-month period beginning March 2007, 115 addicts in the study were prescribed medical-grade heroin, while 25 addicts were given hydromorphone or Dilaudid in a double-blind study. A control group of 111 addicts received oral methadone.
The results, released Friday, showed improved physical and psychological health, a decrease in illicit heroin use and a drop in criminal activities among all participants.
The retention rate for addicts receiving heroin or Dilaudid was 88 per cent. All but one of the addicts receiving Dilaudid were not able to distinguish it from heroin. ...more
A legal painkiller called Dilaudid is more effective in treating serious heroin addiction than methadone therapy, according to a groundbreaking Canadian study.
The North American Opiate Medication Initiative, also known as NAOMI, examined the effectiveness of prescription heroin on hard-core addicts in Vancouver and Montreal, who have repeatedly failed treatment in the past.
Over a 12- to 15-month period beginning March 2007, 115 addicts in the study were prescribed medical-grade heroin, while 25 addicts were given hydromorphone or Dilaudid in a double-blind study. A control group of 111 addicts received oral methadone.
The results, released Friday, showed improved physical and psychological health, a decrease in illicit heroin use and a drop in criminal activities among all participants.
The retention rate for addicts receiving heroin or Dilaudid was 88 per cent. All but one of the addicts receiving Dilaudid were not able to distinguish it from heroin. ...more
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Pharmacist retires after 60 years
From the Victoria (BC) Times Colonist:
Pharmacist Ed Rowley spent close to six decades working for the best of reasons.
"I like working with my sons. I think that's the whole thing -- I like my job," said the 83-year-old Rowley, who retired last month after a colourful 60-year career behind the counter.
During the years that Rowley worked with sons Craig, Grant and Bruce, "I don't think we ever had a disagreement."
Quips fly fast and furious among the four Rowleys, who are well-known in Fairfield, where the Gonzales Pharmacy has dispensed prescriptions since 1952.
Soft-spoken, with a wicked sense of humour, Ed Rowley has a prodigious memory. After graduating from the University of B.C. in 1949, he worked as a pharmacist until Sept. 23, almost 60 years in the same career, one he says has brought him many friends and much satisfaction. ...more
Pharmacist Ed Rowley spent close to six decades working for the best of reasons.
"I like working with my sons. I think that's the whole thing -- I like my job," said the 83-year-old Rowley, who retired last month after a colourful 60-year career behind the counter.
During the years that Rowley worked with sons Craig, Grant and Bruce, "I don't think we ever had a disagreement."
Quips fly fast and furious among the four Rowleys, who are well-known in Fairfield, where the Gonzales Pharmacy has dispensed prescriptions since 1952.
Soft-spoken, with a wicked sense of humour, Ed Rowley has a prodigious memory. After graduating from the University of B.C. in 1949, he worked as a pharmacist until Sept. 23, almost 60 years in the same career, one he says has brought him many friends and much satisfaction. ...more
City woman's fatal drug OD spurs $3.7M lawsuit
From the Edmonton Sun:
The drug-overdose death of an Edmonton woman was the result of negligence by her physician and pharmacists, a $3.7-million lawsuit claims.
The legal action, filed in Calgary Court of Queen's Bench, says Dawn Merrill Johansson wasn't properly monitored while on antidepressants, even though she had survived an earlier overdose.
Johansson died on Sept. 25, 2006, after consuming a fatal dose of the drug citalopram, under the brand name Celexa....
...Pharmacists at the Great Canadian Superstore where Johansson had her prescriptions filled were also negligent for "filling a prescription for an antidepressant which the defendants knew or ought to have known was associated with ... suicidal ideation," claims the suit....more
The drug-overdose death of an Edmonton woman was the result of negligence by her physician and pharmacists, a $3.7-million lawsuit claims.
The legal action, filed in Calgary Court of Queen's Bench, says Dawn Merrill Johansson wasn't properly monitored while on antidepressants, even though she had survived an earlier overdose.
Johansson died on Sept. 25, 2006, after consuming a fatal dose of the drug citalopram, under the brand name Celexa....
...Pharmacists at the Great Canadian Superstore where Johansson had her prescriptions filled were also negligent for "filling a prescription for an antidepressant which the defendants knew or ought to have known was associated with ... suicidal ideation," claims the suit....more
Use of Codeine Products by Nursing Mothers
From Health Canada:
Health Canada is advising the public, especially nursing mothers, about the very rare but serious health risk to breastfed babies posed by codeine use in mothers. Once ingested, codeine is converted by the body into morphine. Some people convert codeine into morphine more rapidly and completely than others. The babies of nursing mothers who rapidly metabolize codeine may be at increased risk for morphine overdose due to higher-than-expected morphine levels in breast milk.
Codeine is found in prescription and non-prescription products used to relieve pain or to treat coughs. Despite the common use of codeine products to manage postpartum pain, reports of adverse events in infants are rare. However, awareness of this new information is important because in severe cases, infant death can occur.
For Health Professionals
For the Public
Health Canada is advising the public, especially nursing mothers, about the very rare but serious health risk to breastfed babies posed by codeine use in mothers. Once ingested, codeine is converted by the body into morphine. Some people convert codeine into morphine more rapidly and completely than others. The babies of nursing mothers who rapidly metabolize codeine may be at increased risk for morphine overdose due to higher-than-expected morphine levels in breast milk.
Codeine is found in prescription and non-prescription products used to relieve pain or to treat coughs. Despite the common use of codeine products to manage postpartum pain, reports of adverse events in infants are rare. However, awareness of this new information is important because in severe cases, infant death can occur.
For Health Professionals
For the Public
Aspirin may cut breast cancer risk
From the Globe and Mail:
A new international study involving Canadian researchers is providing some of the most compelling evidence to date that anti-inflammatory drugs such as Aspirin and Advil may reduce a woman's risk of developing breast cancer.
Researchers reviewed 38 studies that involved a total of 2.7 million women from five countries and found that those who regularly took non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) had a lower incidence of breast cancer.
Past research has indicated there may be a link between the anti-inflammatory drugs and a reduced risk of breast cancer, but some of the results were inconsistent. The new study, being published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, is the largest review ever conducted of these studies and provides strong evidence of a relationship between the drugs, whose generic names are acetylsalicylic acid and ibuprofen, and a reduced breast-cancer risk.
"It is encouraging and we should definitely look into this further," said Mahyar Etminan, one of the study's authors and a scientist at the Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Evaluation at Vancouver Coastal Health. The study was a joint effort by VCH, the University of British Columbia and the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. ...more
A new international study involving Canadian researchers is providing some of the most compelling evidence to date that anti-inflammatory drugs such as Aspirin and Advil may reduce a woman's risk of developing breast cancer.
Researchers reviewed 38 studies that involved a total of 2.7 million women from five countries and found that those who regularly took non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) had a lower incidence of breast cancer.
Past research has indicated there may be a link between the anti-inflammatory drugs and a reduced risk of breast cancer, but some of the results were inconsistent. The new study, being published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, is the largest review ever conducted of these studies and provides strong evidence of a relationship between the drugs, whose generic names are acetylsalicylic acid and ibuprofen, and a reduced breast-cancer risk.
"It is encouraging and we should definitely look into this further," said Mahyar Etminan, one of the study's authors and a scientist at the Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Evaluation at Vancouver Coastal Health. The study was a joint effort by VCH, the University of British Columbia and the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. ...more
Health Canada probes 5 deaths that followed Botox injections
From the Victoria (BC) Times Colonist:
Health Canada is investigating the deaths of five people who had been injected with Botox, and serious reactions in another eight cases.
All the deaths involved people who were treated for such medical conditions as neck and muscle spasms. Two occurred in children with cerebral palsy, including a nine-year-old boy given Botox for drooling - a condition for which the drug hasn't been approved.
The reactions suggest the botulinum toxin may have spread to other parts of the body beyond where it was injected, according to Health Canada.
Only one of the 13 reports Health Canada had received as of March 28 involved using Botox for wrinkles, and none was medically confirmed as "distant toxin spread," according to the agency's most recent adverse reaction newsletter. ...more
Health Canada is investigating the deaths of five people who had been injected with Botox, and serious reactions in another eight cases.
All the deaths involved people who were treated for such medical conditions as neck and muscle spasms. Two occurred in children with cerebral palsy, including a nine-year-old boy given Botox for drooling - a condition for which the drug hasn't been approved.
The reactions suggest the botulinum toxin may have spread to other parts of the body beyond where it was injected, according to Health Canada.
Only one of the 13 reports Health Canada had received as of March 28 involved using Botox for wrinkles, and none was medically confirmed as "distant toxin spread," according to the agency's most recent adverse reaction newsletter. ...more
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Pharmacists want remedy for problematic overhaul
From the Guelph (Ont.) Mercury:
These days, pharmacist Carla Bradshaw wonders why she's in her profession.
Since Queen's Park overhauled the Ontario Drug Benefit program in late 2006, independent pharmacists like Bradshaw have seen their earnings plunge to the point many are closing up shop or selling out.
Bradshaw, who operates Remedy's Rx in the medical complex on Guelph's Westmount Road, is tempted to follow suit.
"It's hit hard," said Bradshaw, who has owned the business for nine years. "It's barely worthwhile for me to stay open as an independent pharmacist."
The changes that came into effect in October 2006 under Bill 102 reduced the government's cost of providing drug coverage to 2.2 million Ontarians. Among those, the list included seniors and people on disability support or social assistance.
The estimated yearly savings to the government is $277 million on the $3.4 billion it spends on drugs.
The changes reduced the markup pharmacists get for selling the products of manufacturers of generic drugs, which are less expensive copies of brand-name medicines. That dropped to eight per cent from 10 per cent, the Independent Pharmacists Association of Ontario reported. ...more
These days, pharmacist Carla Bradshaw wonders why she's in her profession.
Since Queen's Park overhauled the Ontario Drug Benefit program in late 2006, independent pharmacists like Bradshaw have seen their earnings plunge to the point many are closing up shop or selling out.
Bradshaw, who operates Remedy's Rx in the medical complex on Guelph's Westmount Road, is tempted to follow suit.
"It's hit hard," said Bradshaw, who has owned the business for nine years. "It's barely worthwhile for me to stay open as an independent pharmacist."
The changes that came into effect in October 2006 under Bill 102 reduced the government's cost of providing drug coverage to 2.2 million Ontarians. Among those, the list included seniors and people on disability support or social assistance.
The estimated yearly savings to the government is $277 million on the $3.4 billion it spends on drugs.
The changes reduced the markup pharmacists get for selling the products of manufacturers of generic drugs, which are less expensive copies of brand-name medicines. That dropped to eight per cent from 10 per cent, the Independent Pharmacists Association of Ontario reported. ...more
Pneumonia drug cuts heart attack risk
From the Vancouver Sun:
A vaccine that helps protect against pneumonia can also cut the risk of heart attacks, opening the door to a safe and inexpensive way to prevent thousands of cardiac deaths each year, new research shows.
The vaccine, typically used to protect the elderly against the most common cause of bacterial pneumonia, can lower the rate of heart attacks by as much as 50 per cent, says the study.
The study was published in the latest issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
"The magnitude of the effect was really surprising for us," said Dr. Danielle Pilon.
She is the study's lead author and an associate professor of medicine at the Universite de Sherbrooke in Quebec.
"We didn't expect the vaccine to lower the risk of heart attacks by such a high rate."
An accompanying editorial urges physicians to use the vaccine more widely as a preventive measure for patients at high risk of developing heart disease. ...more
A vaccine that helps protect against pneumonia can also cut the risk of heart attacks, opening the door to a safe and inexpensive way to prevent thousands of cardiac deaths each year, new research shows.
The vaccine, typically used to protect the elderly against the most common cause of bacterial pneumonia, can lower the rate of heart attacks by as much as 50 per cent, says the study.
The study was published in the latest issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
"The magnitude of the effect was really surprising for us," said Dr. Danielle Pilon.
She is the study's lead author and an associate professor of medicine at the Universite de Sherbrooke in Quebec.
"We didn't expect the vaccine to lower the risk of heart attacks by such a high rate."
An accompanying editorial urges physicians to use the vaccine more widely as a preventive measure for patients at high risk of developing heart disease. ...more
Cold medication not for kids under 4, U.S. companies say
From Canada.com:
As drug companies in the United States put new warning labels on cold and flu medication for children under four years old, a Canadian manufacturer of children's medicine, said it would not follow suit.
Major U.S. pharmaceutical companies announced Tuesday they would change labels on cough and cold medicines to warn consumers not to give the products to children under four, said the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, a group representing the American producers of over-the-counter kids medicine.
"After consulting with the Food and Drug Administration, the leading manufacturers of these medicines are voluntarily transitioning the labelling on oral (over-the-counter) pediatric cough and cold medicines to state "do not use" in children under four years of age," it said in a statement.
However, Johnson & Johnson Canada said no such warnings will be put on the Canadian products yet.
"At this time the initiatives in the U.S. don't affect our products in Canada," said spokeswoman Tina Peyregatt. "We have been in continuous talks with Health Canada on the same topic but at this time we have not arrived at a decision." ...more
As drug companies in the United States put new warning labels on cold and flu medication for children under four years old, a Canadian manufacturer of children's medicine, said it would not follow suit.
Major U.S. pharmaceutical companies announced Tuesday they would change labels on cough and cold medicines to warn consumers not to give the products to children under four, said the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, a group representing the American producers of over-the-counter kids medicine.
"After consulting with the Food and Drug Administration, the leading manufacturers of these medicines are voluntarily transitioning the labelling on oral (over-the-counter) pediatric cough and cold medicines to state "do not use" in children under four years of age," it said in a statement.
However, Johnson & Johnson Canada said no such warnings will be put on the Canadian products yet.
"At this time the initiatives in the U.S. don't affect our products in Canada," said spokeswoman Tina Peyregatt. "We have been in continuous talks with Health Canada on the same topic but at this time we have not arrived at a decision." ...more
U of M pharmacy students best in Canada
From the Winnipeg Free Press:
Pharmacy students at the University of Manitoba have proven they're the best in Canada by finishing first in the 2008 Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) licensing examinations.
The U of M was one of only two programs in Canada to receive a 100 per cent overall certification on the exams. The exam process includes a written multiple-choice test and a clinical examination component.
It's the third time in five years that U of M has landed in first place. ...more
Pharmacy students at the University of Manitoba have proven they're the best in Canada by finishing first in the 2008 Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) licensing examinations.
The U of M was one of only two programs in Canada to receive a 100 per cent overall certification on the exams. The exam process includes a written multiple-choice test and a clinical examination component.
It's the third time in five years that U of M has landed in first place. ...more
Pharmacists pay for state bungling
Can you imagine an equivalent situation, where a Canadian provincial government implemented a drug plan then didn't reimburse the pharmacies that have already dispensed the drugs? It would be a total mess.
From the Fort Mills (SC) Times:
Illinois pharmacists are stuck helping pay for the Blagojevich administration's bungled health care program expansion.
The Department of Healthcare and Family Services has been informing pharmacies they must eat the cost of drugs dispensed under the expanded FamilyCare program that two courts have struck down, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press.
The computerized notice, with a specific voucher number indicating the service that would not be reimbursed, carries a date of April 21. HFS has not explained whether that was when the prescription was filled or when the notice was sent.
It was two days before an administration lawyer told a Cook County judge that officials had not come up with a way to determine who had received medical care under the illegal expansion, from whom, or how much had been paid. ...more
Monday, October 06, 2008
Jean Coutu Group Reports Net Loss on Rite Aid Stake
From Bloomberg:
Jean Coutu Group Inc., the Canadian drugstore chain that owns about a third of Rite Aid Corp., reported a second-quarter loss because of its stake in the money-losing U.S. pharmacy chain. Sales missed analysts' estimate as consumers slowed spending.
The net loss was C$39.1 million ($36 million), or 16 cents a share, compared with net income of C$8.3 million, or 3 cents, a year earlier, the Longueuil, Quebec-based company said today in a statement.
Rite Aid reported Sept. 25 that its second-quarter loss more than doubled to $222 million, or 27 cents a share, because of declining sales and higher financing costs. It was Rite Aid's fifth straight unprofitable quarter. Canadian accounting rules require Jean Coutu to include results from its 30 percent stake in Rite Aid in its financial statements.
``Rite Aid is still a bit of an albatross, even though it's only worth about 10 to 12 percent of the stock,'' David Hartley, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said in a telephone interview. ...more
Jean Coutu Group Inc., the Canadian drugstore chain that owns about a third of Rite Aid Corp., reported a second-quarter loss because of its stake in the money-losing U.S. pharmacy chain. Sales missed analysts' estimate as consumers slowed spending.
The net loss was C$39.1 million ($36 million), or 16 cents a share, compared with net income of C$8.3 million, or 3 cents, a year earlier, the Longueuil, Quebec-based company said today in a statement.
Rite Aid reported Sept. 25 that its second-quarter loss more than doubled to $222 million, or 27 cents a share, because of declining sales and higher financing costs. It was Rite Aid's fifth straight unprofitable quarter. Canadian accounting rules require Jean Coutu to include results from its 30 percent stake in Rite Aid in its financial statements.
``Rite Aid is still a bit of an albatross, even though it's only worth about 10 to 12 percent of the stock,'' David Hartley, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said in a telephone interview. ...more
Sale of cough, cold medicines for children under 6 reviewed
From CBC News:
Banning over-the-counter cough and cold medicines for children under six might drive parents to resort to adult medicines, a U.S. health official said in weighing a recall of products to fight runny noses, hacking and congestion.
Some pediatricians and consumer groups are seeking a ban on the sale of the cough and cold medicines for children, saying the value of the products remains unproven and they are potentially risky.
At a public hearing Thursday, officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration agreed there is a lack of solid evidence to support the use of the pediatric cough and cold medicines, especially in those aged two to six.
But if parents turn to adult medicines, the results could be worse, said Dr. John Jenkins, head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Office of New Drugs. ...more
Banning over-the-counter cough and cold medicines for children under six might drive parents to resort to adult medicines, a U.S. health official said in weighing a recall of products to fight runny noses, hacking and congestion.
Some pediatricians and consumer groups are seeking a ban on the sale of the cough and cold medicines for children, saying the value of the products remains unproven and they are potentially risky.
At a public hearing Thursday, officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration agreed there is a lack of solid evidence to support the use of the pediatric cough and cold medicines, especially in those aged two to six.
But if parents turn to adult medicines, the results could be worse, said Dr. John Jenkins, head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Office of New Drugs. ...more
Thursday, October 02, 2008
Entrepreneur writes up alternative to drug samples
From the Halifax Chronicle Herald:
Nova Scotia entrepreneur William Adams will take centre stage Friday at a special awards ceremony celebrating innovation.
Mr. Adams is the force behind SmartSample, which replaces traditional pharmaceutical samples with a specialized prescription that physicians can endorse and give to patients. Patients can use the prescription to receive free samples from any pharmacy in Canada from its regular supply of medications.
A practice dating back to the 1920s, sampling is the pharmaceutical industry’s primary marketing tool. It also has a important role in health care because it allows physicians and patients to evaluate drug therapies at no cost.
But as traditionally practised, Mr. Adams said sampling is wasteful and incompatible with electronic health records, and has the potential to compromise patient safety.
As a new pharmaceutical rep in the 1990s, on the road for two weeks each month with a minivan full of drug samples, Mr. Adams quickly realized how challenging it was to meet Health Canada’s guidelines for pharmaceutical products. Like prescribed medications, drug samples should be stored at the right temperature and used before they expire, and Adams says that before pharmaceutical reps can collect expired drug samples, many end up in landfills. ...more
Nova Scotia entrepreneur William Adams will take centre stage Friday at a special awards ceremony celebrating innovation.
Mr. Adams is the force behind SmartSample, which replaces traditional pharmaceutical samples with a specialized prescription that physicians can endorse and give to patients. Patients can use the prescription to receive free samples from any pharmacy in Canada from its regular supply of medications.
A practice dating back to the 1920s, sampling is the pharmaceutical industry’s primary marketing tool. It also has a important role in health care because it allows physicians and patients to evaluate drug therapies at no cost.
But as traditionally practised, Mr. Adams said sampling is wasteful and incompatible with electronic health records, and has the potential to compromise patient safety.
As a new pharmaceutical rep in the 1990s, on the road for two weeks each month with a minivan full of drug samples, Mr. Adams quickly realized how challenging it was to meet Health Canada’s guidelines for pharmaceutical products. Like prescribed medications, drug samples should be stored at the right temperature and used before they expire, and Adams says that before pharmaceutical reps can collect expired drug samples, many end up in landfills. ...more
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