COVID-19

Today, we’re thanking Luke Morrison, MHA, operations manager at Gates Pharmacy in North Carolina.

Located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the organization hopes to raise $125 million to generate 5 new drugs with human safety and dosing data in 5 years to be ready for the next pandemic.

The antiviral drug remdesivir has been shown by researchers to effectively stop the replication mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19, according to a new study.

Today, we’re thanking Jessica Tackett, PharmD, BCPS, and Brittany Bissell, PharmD, PhD, BCCCP, both of whom work in the University of Kentucky (UK) HealthCare system.

Patients with lupus are experiencing difficulties in accessing medications hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, 2 medications currently being investigated as potential treatment for the coronavirus 2019 disease.

Parata Systems has launched the Pharmacy Employee Relief Fund with an initial commitment of $100,000 to support employees of retail, long-term care, hospital, and direct-to-home pharmacies across the United States affected by the coronavirus disease 2019.

The widely available anti-parasitic drug ivermectin is capable of killing COVID-19 within 48 hours in a cell culture, according to a new study.

Additionally, blood group O has a significantly lower risk for the infection compared with non-O blood groups, according to the researchers.

Public policies to increase compliance with community mitigation strategies may be effective in decreasing community mobility.

Today we’re thanking Andrea and Ann-Marie Idusuyi, 2 sisters working hard on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Remdesivir is not yet licensed or approved anywhere internationally and has not been demonstrated to be safe or effective for the treatment of COVID-19.

Researchers investigated the presence of coronaviruses in the bat population due to an understanding that coronaviruses can spread following a spillover from animals.

Chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, and azithromycin are currently being evaluated as potential treatments for COVID-19, despite limited evidence to support the drugs’ efficacy.

The American Lung Association (ALA) has started a $25M initiative to address the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and other future respiratory virus pandemics.

A study based in Brazil has been halted early for safety reasons after patients with coronavirus disease 2019 taking a higher dose of chloroquine developed irregular heart rates that increased their risk of a potentially fatal heart arrhythmia.

A new test developed for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that uses saliva has been approved by the FDA, according to Rutgers University.

Providers with access to COVID-19 tests have reported false-negative results for some patients, raising concerns about the limitations of tests as a source of reliable information.

Although chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been touted as potential treatments for COVID-19, physicians in Italy have warned that the global supply may not be able to keep up with demand.

Purdue University’s College of Pharmacy is granting early graduation to 144 students to help cover a potential shortage of pharmacists during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

Troy Trygstad, PharmD, MBA, PhD, discusses the impact of COVID-19 on rural pharmacies and communities.

Suzanne Soliman, PharmD, BCMAS, discusses what the Pharmacist Moms Group is doing during COVID-19.

COA released a statement explaining that it fundamentally opposes home infusion of chemotherapy, cancer immunotherapy, and cancer treatment supportive drugs due to concerns regarding the safety of patients in such an environment.

Derek Angus, MD, MPH and his collaborators had developed a platform called REMAP-Community Acquired Pneumonia (REMAP-CAP), which was designed to find optimal treatment for severe pneumonia both in non-pandemic and pandemic settings.

Every pharmacy within the Guardian Pharmacy Service network has their own disaster contingency plan in place so that they are supported in an emergency, such as the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

Top news of the week from Pharmacy Times surrounding the novel coronavirus.