NC looks to curb prescription drug abuse through 'doctor shopping'

WRAL.com-20 hours ago

"Doctor shoppers connotes someone that tends to goes from prescriber to prescriber to obtain prescriptions often and usually under false pretenses," said Jay Campbell, executive director of the North Carolina Board of Pharmacy. He said pharmacistsoften fill prescriptions completely unaware that they are fraudulent.

Costly toys forfeited in $100 million pharmacy fraud case

Costly toys forfeited in $100 million pharmacy fraud case

Kaplan Herald-7 hours ago

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the president and owner of a Florida pharmacy that was at the center of a massive compounding pharmacy fraud scheme pleaded guilty. Seven others previously admitted their part in the scheme. Private insurance companies, Medicare and TRICARE were victims of the fraud, ...

Simmons among firms chosen to represent Cook County in opioid ...

Madison County Record-21 hours ago

Nationally, the lawsuit cites a 2016 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating the “national impact of prescription opioid overdoses, abuse and dependence” at $78.5 billion, including “lost productivity” at $42 billion, “health insurance” at $26 billion, “criminal justice” at $7.6 billion and “substance ...

Drug prices rise as pharma profit soars

ModernHealthcare.com-21 hours ago

The amount of money people spend on prescription drugs has nearly doubled over the past three decades as pharmaceutical sales and profit margins have ballooned, according to ... Retail prescriptiondrug expenses accounted for about 12% of total U.S. healthcare spending in 2015, up from about 7% through the 1990s.

New state laws going into effect starting in 2018

KRNV My News 4-2 hours ago

ASSEMBLY BILL 474: AN ACT relating to drugs; requiring certain persons to make a report of a drug overdose or suspected drug overdose; revising provisions concerning the computerized program to track each prescription for a controlled substance; revising provisions governing the accessibility of health care records in ...

The other big drug problem: Older people taking too many pills

The Durango Herald-21 hours ago

Researchers estimate that 25 percent of people ages 65 to 69 take at least five prescription drugs to treat chronic conditions, a figure that jumps to nearly 46 percent for those between 70 and 79. Doctors say it is not uncommon to encounter patients taking more than 20 drugs to treat acid reflux, heart 

Elwood files lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies

WRTV Indianapolis-12 hours ago

ELWOOD, Ind. -- The city of Elwood is joining the growing list of Indiana cities filing lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies. The prescription rate in Madison County is as high as 155 prescriptions for every 100 residents. According to the Center for Disease Control, the national average about 82 prescriptions for every

New law aims to fight opioid epidemic

WNEM Saginaw-18 hours ago

According to the MDHHS, in 2015 - for every 100 people - there were about 115 prescriptions for opioids. Marronne said by limiting the number of pills a doctor can prescribe, it just means people who have an addiction will seek out drugs on the streets. "Lawmakers think you can take away the opportunity by reducing the ...

New Illinois laws coming in 2018

KFVS-18 hours ago

That's when patients obtain opioid prescriptions from multiple prescriptions. Prescribers with an Illinois Controlled Substance License will be required to register with and use the Illinois Prescription Drug Monitoring Program. It keeps tabs on patient's prescription history. Physicians who are not i

New Illinois laws coming in 2018

KFVS-18 hours ago

That's when patients obtain opioid prescriptions from multiple prescriptions. Prescribers with an Illinois Controlled Substance License will be required to register with and use the Illinois Prescription Drug Monitoring Program. It keeps tabs on patient's prescription history. Physicians who are not i

On the Front Lines of the Opioid Epidemic

Inside Science News Service-32 minutes ago

The woman had suffered a microembolism when the undissolved bits of crushed prescription pills she had injected into her arms became stuck in her peripheral veins, blocking the blood flow. Last month at the Radiological Society of North America meeting in Chicago, Flores and his colleagues presented the results of a .

Killer Crisis: Changing prescribing behavior requires education for ...

Grand Forks Herald-4 hours ago

Dentists were the top prescribers of opioids to patients ages 10-19 in 2009, accounting for about 30 percent of prescriptions dispensed, according to a study published in the Journal ... To aid doctors and pharmacists in stemming prescriptio

Opioids become major Minnesota killer: 'It's a plague. It's going to be ...

Detroit Lakes Online-30 minutes ago

The good news for Minnesota is that it has the fifth lowest rate of opioid prescriptions. However, Dr. Rahul Koranne of the Minnesota Hospital Association said, there still are 47 prescriptions written for every 100 Minnesotans. Greater Minnesota trends are different than found in the Twin Cities, the Health Department 

These Americans are most likely to receive opioid prescriptions

MarketWatch-22 hours ago

Opioid prescriptions were highest in places with lower median household incomes and higher unemployment rates and those aged 55 to 64 years old rather than younger Americans, according to research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which analyzed data of almost 3.5 million adults younger than ...

These Americans are most likely to receive opioid prescriptions

MarketWatch-22 hours ago

Opioid prescriptions were highest in places with lower median household incomes and higher unemployment rates and those aged 55 to 64 years old rather than younger Americans, according to research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which analyzed data of almost 3.5 million adults younger than ...

These Americans are most likely to receive opioid prescriptions

MarketWatch-22 hours ago

Opioid prescriptions were highest in places with lower median household incomes and higher unemployment rates and those aged 55 to 64 years old rather than younger Americans, according to research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which analyzed data of almost 3.5 million adults younger than ...

Law limiting opioid prescriptions to go into effect Monday

WITN-6 hours ago

After that, it's up to the physician to refill the prescription as they see needed. The limits do not apply to cancer patients, nursing homes, or others that need long-term treatments. The Strengthen Opioid Misuse Prevent (STOP) Act was signed into law by Governor Cooper in June in an effort to reduce the chances of a patient ...

Nevada To Track Opioid Overdoses, Prescriptions Faster Thanks To ...
TheFix.com-3 hours ago

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North Dakota sees steep drop in opioid painkiller prescriptions

Bismarck Tribune-12 hours ago

... other practitioners are becoming more restrictive in prescribing opioid painkillers, and narcotic prescriptions and other controlled drugs are carefully tracked by pharmacists and others, some addicts are turning to street sources, said Michael Schwab, executive vice president of the North Dakota Pharmacists Association.

Another Detroit pharmacist has been suspended for allegedly over ...

Detroit Metro Times-20 hours ago

Court filings reveal that between Jan. 1 2017 and April 28 2017, nearly a quarter of prescriptions filled at Joe's Discount Pharmacy were paid for in cash, which is more than double the 10 percent state average. The above-average cash payments suggest prescriptions were filled for illegal purposes, according to the filings.

Detroit pharmacy and pharmacist summarily suspended over ...
Arab American News-16 hours ago

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FDA Law Blog: Congress To DEA: Update Schedule II Partial Fill Regulations Swiftly December 29, 2017 By Larry K. Houck —

http://www.fdalawblog.net/2017/12/congress-to-dea-update-schedule-ii-partial-fill-regulations-swiftly/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FdaLawBlog+%28FDA+Law+Blog%29

Russian Doping Whistleblower Says He Fears For His Life

NPR-22 hours ago

Rodchenkov gave details of a massive state-run doping campaign that helped Russian athletes win big in the 2014 Sochi Olympics. His cooperation was instrumental in the International Olympic Committee's decision to ban Russia from the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. Well now, Rodchenkov fears Russia wants ...

Top Health Story of 2017: Opioid Abuse Epidemic

WebMD-3 hours ago

The advent of extremely powerful opioids such as fentanyl is only compounding the problem, experts say. But a turnaround is possible. "It's important to remember these deaths are preventable," said Lindsey Vuolo, associate director of health law and policy with the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse.

FDA Law Blog-Jury Was Entitled to Hear Advice-of-(Second)-Counsel Defense: Conviction Reversed December 28, 2017 By Douglas B. Farquhar —

http://www.fdalawblog.net/2017/12/jury-was-entitled-to-hear-advice-of-second-counsel-defense-conviction-reversed/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FdaLawBlog+%28FDA+Law+Blog%29

"However, the conventional view of pharmacy compounding as a practice limited to a local pharmacy making a product for an individual patient is clearly at odds with the realities of modern drug-compounding practices, as the NECC episode illustrates. "

quoted from http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1712905#t=article

"Since the 2012 meningitis outbreak, the agency has conducted more than 425 inspections of compounding pharmacies. We have observed problematic conditions during the vast majority of these inspections and have overseen more than 140 recalls of compounded drugs "

quoted form http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1712905#t=article

PharMEDium Services, LLC Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall of Certain Lots ofCompounded .

PharMEDium Services, LLC Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall of Certain Lots ofCompounded ... PR Newswire (press release) The recall is being issued because PharMEDium conducted a retrospective review of all commercially distributed product lots compounded in the Memphis location currently within their labeled expiration date in response to an FDA request regarding microbial control program during recent inspection to ...

Must Read!! Toward Better-Quality Compounded Drugs — An Update from the FDA — NEJM

Toward Better-Quality Compounded Drugs — An Update from the FDA — NEJM: Perspective from The New England Journal of Medicine — Toward Better-Quality Compounded Drugs — An Update from the FDA

FDA Requires New Warning On MRI 'Dyes' That Chuck Norris Says ...

Forbes-Dec 26, 2017

The Food and Drug Administration has announced that it will require new safety measures for certain contrast agents, or "dyes," used to enhance magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, because small amounts of the compounds can be retained in the brain and other tissues. The FDA stopped short of a ..

Health Data Privacy and Security: What Will 2018 Bring?

GovInfoSecurity.com (blog)-15 hours ago

More and larger breaches from business associates: Most BAs I've spoken to, from the largest of cloud services to the smallest of niche services, simply do not think they need to comply with HIPAA and expect their clients to implement all security controls. Most BAs do not have comprehensive information security or privacy ...

Crafting a Strong Healthcare Cybersecurity Action Plan

HealthITSecurity.com-10 hours ago

Smaller healthcare organizations, such as rural hospitals or single-physician practices can find it much more difficult to maintain HIPAA compliance, said AHIMA IG Advisors Senior Director Kathy Downing, MA, RHIA. “Often times, those smaller organizations can't necessarily hire full-time staff to manage privacy and security

Opioid Crisis Continues to Pressure Physicians, But Patients Bear ...

Anesthesiology News-19 hours ago

Dr. DeMicco added that despite changes in some plans allowing soft edits and enabling pharmacist overrides at the point of sale, “it is still very challenging.” Similarly, some insurance companies will not pay for extended release, or “have created incredibly lengthy red tape” that must be navigated before payment, ..

Arthritis drugs show how US drug prices defy economics

Pharmacy Today, American Pharmacists Association, pharmacist.com-10 hours ago

The laws of economics suggest that introducing multiple new drugs for a condition should bring prices down over time, but the experience with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) shows how that is not always the case. The laws of economics suggest that introducing multiple new drugs for a condition should bring prices down over ...

Minnesota's opioid crisis: Many problems begin with a prescription

TwinCities.com-Pioneer Press-11 hours ago

To aid doctors and pharmacists in stemming prescription opioid abuse, the state has set up the Minnesota Prescription Monitoring Program. The database contains information on controlled substance prescriptions, including details about the recipient, quantity of medication dispensed and the name of the prescriber.

A Good Start: President Trump and the Opioid Abuse Crisis

Pharmacy Times-8 hours ago

In late October 2017, President Donald J. Trump declared the opioid abuse problem in America a national emergency. In his announcement, he expressed concern for the thousands of addicts and their plight. Trump also discussed increased federal enforcement and referenced a recent indictment of Chinese citizens who ...

New Nevada drug law deals with opioid prescriptions

Pharmacy Today, American Pharmacists Association, pharmacist.com-10 hours ago

Paul Edwards of the Nevada Pharmacy Board says once the law is in place, all practitioners in the state will have to enroll in the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program to keep their DEA license to prescribe controlled substances. Currently, more than 85% are already in that program that's designed to prevent addicts from ...

Kmart to Pay $32.3M to Settle False Claims Act Allegations

HealthLeaders Media-9 hours ago

Kmart Corp. will pay the federal government $32.3 million to settle allegations that its pharmacies failed to report discounted prescription drug prices to Medicare Part D, Medicaid, and TRICARE, the Justice Department announced. The settlement ends a nearly 10-year legal battle and stems from a 2008 lawsuit, filed by ...

Kmart to Pay $42 Million to Settle False Claims Act Case
Corporate Crime Reporter-6 hours ago

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Fighting the opioid crisis

The Tand D.com-17 hours ago

Given that distributors are responsible for helping to deliver physician-prescribed medications to pharmacies, we have a unique perspective into how this supply chain works — and the ways it can be subverted by bad actors. What would be most effective would be better collaboration, coordination and cooperation between ...

Walgreens Boots Alliance reduces stake in China's pharmacy ...

Drug Store News-10 hours ago

It has been announced that Walgreens Boots Alliance will be reducing its stake in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals Corporation, a pharmaceutical wholesaling joint venture in China. This announcement comes after the Deerfield, Ill.-based company announced plans earlier this year their plans to take a 40% stake in ...

$1.27 EPS Expected for Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA)
Frisco Fastball-14 hours ago

WASHINGTON TRUST Co Has $1.22 Million Stake in Walgreens ...
The Ledger Gazette-10 hours ago

Comerica Bank Increases Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc ...
The Lincolnian Online-11 hours ago

38700 Shares in Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (WBA) Purchased by ...
TrueBlueTribune-10 hours ago

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CVS Pharmacy settles for allegedly overcharging customers

OCRegister-2 hours ago

LOS ANGELES — CVS Pharmacy Inc. has agreed to designate two executives who will be accountable for pricing issues in Southern and Northern California under a judgment modifying a 2015 settlement for allegedly overcharging customers, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced today. The Rhode ...

Pharmacist Takes Plea Deal in Billing Fraud Case

Pharmacist Takes Plea Deal in Billing Fraud Case

Pharmacy Times-8 hours ago

A pharmacist was charged in federal court with numerous counts of submitting fraudulent claims for reimbursement to federally run health plans, along with a number of other financial transgressions. Federal agents executed search warrants to review information in the computers at the pharmaciesowned by the pharmacist ...

Marketer of fake brain-boosting herbal pills barred from selling in Iowa

DesMoinesRegister.com-17 hours ago

The marketer of an herbal remedy that falsely claimed to reduce memory loss has been ordered to stop targeting Iowans, authorities said. JGG Enterprises Inc. and its owner, Joseph Gregory Grelock, have been barred from marketing Intellux and other dietary supplements in Iowa that claimed to provide health benefits ...

Statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD on efforts to ...

FDA.gov-3 hours ago

They've been involved in cases that range from lead contamination of a dietarysupplement, Salmonella contamination of powdered milk, E. coli O157:H7 in soy nut butter and Listeria in hummus, soft cheese and smoked fish. In addition to facilitating recalls and import alerts for the detention of products entering the United .

Jamestown compounding pharmacy reports hacking incident

https://www.bizjournals.com/.../jamestown-compounding-pharmacy-reports-hacking....

6 hours ago - According to its website, the company's pharmacists create custom compoundedmedications for individual needs, working with pharmacists and practitioners to customize medication for individual needs.

12/19/2017

C. O. Truxton Inc.

New Jersey District Office

CGMP/Finished Pharmaceuticals/Adulterated/Misbranded

Not Issued *

12/19/2017

Maine Natural Health, Inc.

New York District Office

CGMP/Dietary Supplement/Adulterated/Misbranded

Not Issued *

12/14/2017

Eden’s Answers Inc. and Sprigs Life Inc.

Cincinnati District Office

Unapproved New Drugs/Misbranded

Not Issued *

12/14/2017

BrainAlert, LLC

Seattle District Office

CGMP/Dietary Supplement/Adulterated/Misbranded

Not Issued *

12/13/2017

AN Co. Ltd.

Center for Drug Evaluation and Research

CGMP/Finished Pharmaceuticals/Adulterated

Not Issued *

12/13/2017

Dynamic Technical Formulations

Atlanta District Office

CGMP/Dietary Supplement/Adulterated/Misbranded

Not Issued *

12/13/2017

Amaros Co., Ltd

Center for Drug Evaluation and Research

CGMP/Finished Pharmaceuticals/Adulterated

Not Issued *

12/04/2017

Fresenius Kabi Oncology Ltd

Center for Drug Evaluation and Research

CGMP/Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API)/Adulterated

Not Issued *

Healthy individuals need not take dietary supplements, say experts

Malay Mail Online-11 hours ago

Dieticians advise healthy individuals that they do not need to take any dietarysupplements. — AFP file picALOR STAR, Dec 24 — It is not necessary for healthy individuals to take any dietary supplements, says the head of the Dietetics and Food Service Department at Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital, here. Khairul Nizam Mat ...

From Russian doping to FIFA bribery, 2017 proves dark time

Capital FM Kenya-6 hours ago

PARIS, France, Dec 24 – Russia being banned from the Winter Olympics stole the headlines but may also have overshadowed an otherwise sorry year for sport in terms of scandals. It was a particularly damaging year for sporting officials, not least from the world of football and FIFA in particular. Former Guam football ...

FIFA promise to investigate doping in football: 'We WILL test suspect ...
Daily Mail-20 hours ago

Infantino must prove FIFA commitment to cleaning up
Mail Tribune-17 hours ago

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Carter reflects on 2017 in Washington

Savannah Morning News-15 hours ago

As the only pharmacist in Congress, I take my position on this committee and the Health Subcommittee very seriously. This year in the subcommittee, we worked to modernize the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) regulation of over-the-counter drugs. We held a hearing to examine patient access to investigational drugs

The other big drug problem: Older people taking too many pills

Greensboro News & Record-13 hours ago

Older people taking lots of medication was what Canadian pharmacist Barbara Farrell encountered when she began working at a geriatric hospital in Ottawa nearly two decades ago. Her experience, she said, was a catalyst for the Canadian Deprescribing Network, a consortium of researchers, physicians, pharmacists and ...

Winnipeg-based Internet pharmacy pioneer facing charges in US ...

CBC.ca-5 hours ago

Internet pharmacist Kris Thorkelson will have to make a personal appearance in a U.S. court this spring to plead guilty and be sentenced in a case involving the alleged sale of counterfeit cancer drugs, court documents show. Federal prosecutors in the U.S. have accused Thorkelson, CanadaDrugs.com, and affiliated ..

Kmart Settles Prescription Drugs Allegations Brought By Ohio ...

WCBE 90.5 FM-11 hours ago

Kmart, part of Sears Holdings Corporation, was sued in 2008 by former company pharmacist James Garbe, who worked in Defiance. The whistleblower lawsuit alleged Kmart offered discounted prices to customers who paid in cash through club programs but failed to report those discounts to federal health programs such ...

Kmart must pay $59 in drug fraud settlement
KITV Honolulu-Dec 23, 2017

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Tulsa pharmacy's new packaging adds convenience, compliance

NewsOK.com-1 minute ago

Couch Pharmacy recently implemented a new automated compliance strip packaging system that eliminates the need for pill bottles and pill planners. The system packages all prescription and nonprescription medications together in perforated pouches for each time of the day. The packages are in sequential order, and ...

Recently Updated Advisory Committee Materials - FDA

https://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/WhatsNew/default.htm

9 hours ago - Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee. Minutes for the November 20-21, 2017 Meeting of the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee (PCAC) (PDF - 77KB) ...