Community/Retail

Eliminating retroactive pharmacy payment reductions — or post point-of-sale pharmacy "DIR fees" — in Medicare Part D would save the federal government $3.4 billion over 10 years, according to a Wakely Consulting Group study released today by the National Community Pharmacists Association.

Officials with the FDA have approved abemaciclib (Verzenio, Eli Lilly), for the treatment of adults with certain advanced or metastatic breast cancer.

The agreement requires Amgen to pay royalties to AbbVie for sales of the biosimilar, according to a press release.

This weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings, and more. Our Week in Review is a can't miss for the busy pharmacy professional.

Officials with the FDA have approved FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System (Abbot Diabetes Care Inc.), the first continuous glucose monitoring system for adult patients that reduces the need for fingerstick testing.

Coffee drinking can cut down risk of all-cause mortality in patients with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) by half, according to a 5-year study published in the Journal of Hepatology.

A New Jersey company that sold injectable skin whitening and other beauty products has been ordered to stop selling and recall some of its products because they are unapproved new drugs that are potentially unsafe to consumers, according to the FDA's press release.

The number of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) reported in the United States has reached a record high.

Recently, experimental animal interventions have suggested that folic acid intake that exceeds the recommended dose may increase risk of respiratory disease in offspring.

During Operation Pangea X, the FDA sent 13 warning letters to the operators of 401 websites.

Don't let stress rule your life; instead, learn how to rule stress.

Officials with the FDA have rejected Intellipharmaceutics’ abuse-deterrent Oxycodone Hydrochloride Extended-Release Tablets (Rexista), the company announced in a press release.

As HIV becomes a disease of older Americans, it is time for all health care professionals to recognize the age-associated comorbidities unique to this population.

Dietary supplement use among Americans who are 60 and or older is widespread.

This year, the technology giant highlighted 22 applications for patients. Here are the ones that are most relevant to pharmacists.

This virus is found in tropical and subtropical areas in South America and Africa.

The chapter, effective July 1, 2018, includes the entire drug handling process, from receipt to the proper disposal of both sterile and nonsterile products:

This weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings, and more. Our Week in Review is a can't miss for the busy pharmacy professional.

In the video, JoEllen Wolicki, a nurse educator with the CDC, notes that that CDC recommends an “in purpose-built unit specifically designed for the storage of biologics, or if necessary, a stand alone household refrigerator” to store flu vaccines.

The alert urges health care professionals to monitor for any signs of liver injury.

FDA officials have issued a drug safety communication advising that buprenorphine and methadone should not be withheld from patients taking benzodiazepines or other central nervous system (CNS) depressants.

In recent years, thalidomide and similar molecular entities have reentered the clinical milieu and have been approved for several indications.

The journal Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology has published a review article that discusses repositioning of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in cancer treatment.

Pharmacists must continue to evolve to the needs of their patients and always remain a key player in health care decisions.

5-Fluorouracil is the mainstay of treatment for many cancers, with upwards of 30% rates of adverse effects. DPD deficiency can further amplify these effects and even lead to life-threatening toxicity. Uridine triacetate is FDA approved for 5-FU and capecitabine overdose treatment within 96 hours of administration.

In the report, WHO officials identified 12 classes of priority pathogens, including tuberculosis, pneumonia and urinary tract infections that are increasingly resistant to existing antibiotics and in need of new treatments.

In Lesotho, more than 67% of all HIV-positive adults ages 15-59 have been able to achieve viral load suppression.

Early life exposure to pet or pest allergens may reduce the likelihood of asthma development in young children, according to a recently-published study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.1

Opioid-associated problems have become increasingly prevalent in children.