July/August 2014

Opsumit (macitentan) was approved to reduce the risk of hospitalization and delay disease progression in patients with WHO group I pulmonary arterial hypertension.

New drugs to treat hepatitis C herald a new era of higher cure rates, but with these new treatment options comes an increased need for patient support and adherence counseling.

Early diagnosis is the key to successful management of psoriatic arthritis, and treatment of this inflammatory disease is largely dependent on which symptoms are predominant.

The development of the Certified Specialty Pharmacist provides the opportunity for specialty pharmacists to demonstrate their expertise through an evaluation of their skills.

With the recent approval of new hepatitis C treatments, payers are increasingly concerned with controlling costs in this category through policies that may affect treatment decisions.

Community-based specialty pharmacies are poised to set the trend for delivery of specialty drugs because of their emphasis on the personal care and patient management that help ensure positive outcomes.

Approval is expected in 2014 for drugs to treat psoriasis, cancer, and orphan conditions.

Cost containment and formulary management policies can have a major effect on the ways in which specialty pharmacists provide services to patients.

When specialty pharmacists refine their skills and adapt their methods of providing services to patients, they are directing their own destinies and taking on a valuable role in the community.

Government involvement may be required in order to keep corporate entities from bullying specialty pharmacies out of business.

Many specialty products require a limited access approach, and specialty pharmacists need to have knowledge of the distribution and supply chain structure.