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New Survey:
Pharmacists Report Patients Do
Not Treat Cold
and Flu Symptoms Early Enough
A
recent national survey of 505
pharmacists found that nine out of 10 pharmacists believe it is important for a
patient to seek treatment early to help shorten the duration and severity of a
cold. And 75 percent of pharmacists say most patients should purchase
over-the-counter (OTC) cold and flu products at the first sign of symptoms,
while only 26 percent of their patients take this proactive approach.
According to
the survey, (National Pharmacist O.T.C. (Observations on the Treatment of
Colds)” sponsored by Matrixx Initiatives Inc. an OTC healthcare company)
pharmacists
are increasingly playing a more prominent role in patient care due to the
anticipated severity of the upcoming cold and flu season and the current state
of the economy. The survey also showed 87 percent of pharmacists anticipate an
overall increase in the number of cold and flu patients seeking their counsel
and 85 percent agree that the economic downturn will specifically lead more
patients to first come to their pharmacist rather than a physician.
“Early
preparedness is going to be more important this cold and flu season; however,
even with the threat of stronger, more virulent infections, pharmacists note
that patients oftentimes delay treatment allowing a virus to live longer,” said
Dr. Fred Eckel, professor of Pharmacy Practice and Experiential Education at the
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy.
“Pharmacists are the most accessible health care provider for patients with cold
and flu symptoms and the survey findings emphasize the important role of the
pharmacist in educating patients with information about early treatment to
shorten the duration and severity of a cold.”
Other key
findings from the survey include:
u
Eighty-five percent
of pharmacists agree the economy has increased the number of patient questions
about OTC products.
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Eighty-one percent
of pharmacists agree that more patients are opting to purchase OTC medications
versus filling prescriptions due to the economic downturn.
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Eighty-one percent
of pharmacists report making five or more recommendations per day for OTC cold
and flu products.
Conducted in
September 2009, the survey was based on a nationally representative random
sample of 505 pharmacists working in independent and chain pharmacies. The
sample frame was developed using Medical Marketing Service Inc.'s pharmacies
list, that includes more than 68,000 pharmacies and is updated monthly. Only one
pharmacist was allowed to respond per pharmacy. Richard Day Research Inc. was
responsible for survey design, data analysis and reporting.
03/04/10
NABP Commends
Google's VIPPS-Accreditation
Requirement for
Internet Pharmacy Advertisers
Rogue
Internet drug outlets will soon find it more difficult to advertise to
unsuspecting consumers, thanks to Google's decision to require VIPPS (Verified
Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites) accreditation, according to the National
Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) which recently commended Google for the
new restrictions the company has placed on Web sites selling prescription drugs
that are seeking to advertise in the United States through Google AdWords.
"For too
long, rogue Web sites posing as legitimate pharmacies have continued, unabated,
to peddle substandard, tainted, and counterfeit drugs to unwitting patients,"
says NABP president Gary A. Schnabel, RN, RPh. "Google's policy change is a
major step toward ridding the Internet of these operations, and we applaud
Google's commitment to patient safety."
On February
9, 2010, Google announced in its Inside AdWords blog that the company will
accept ads only from Internet pharmacies in the United States that are
accredited through the VIPPS program, and from Internet pharmacies in Canada
that are accredited by the Canadian International Pharmacy Association. The
revised policy allows Internet pharmacies to target ads only to patients in the
country in which the pharmacies are accredited.
The AdWords
blog indicates that, once the policy change went into effect later in February
2010, ads for Internet drug outlets that are not accredited by VIPPS or CIPA
will no longer appear in Google's sponsored search results.
Since the
advent of its VIPPS program more than a decade ago, NABP has been working to
protect patients from rogue Internet drug outlets that circumvent pharmacy laws
and practice standards established to protect patient health. In February 2008,
NABP began an intensive study of Web sites selling prescription drugs and has
found that, of the more than 5,000 Internet drug outlets NABP has reviewed, 96
percent appear to be out of compliance with pharmacy laws and practice
standards. These sites dispense dangerous prescription drugs to patients without
a valid prescription or medical oversight. The drugs are often unapproved for
sale in the United States, or any other developed country, and are often
substandard, contaminated, or counterfeit.
By contrast,
VIPPS-accredited pharmacies have undergone and successfully completed the
thorough NABP accreditation process, which includes a thorough review of all
policies and procedures regarding the practice of pharmacy and dispensing of
medicine over the Internet, as well as an on-site inspection of all facilities
used by the site to receive, review, and dispense medicine. For this reason,
NABP recommends that patients use VIPPS-accredited Internet pharmacies when
buying medicine online.
"Google's
policy revision sets an important precedent in the international push to curb
the proliferation of rogue Internet drug outlets," NABP president Schnabel
notes. "We encourage other search engines to follow Google's lead and take a
stand for patient safety."
More
information on the VIPPS program, along with a list of VIPPS-accredited
pharmacies, is available under Accreditation Programs on the NABP Web site,
www.nabp.net/.
03/04/10
NCPA Commends
Senators Baucus, Grassley
for Urging
Discretion in Enforcement of
Medicare DMEPOS
Accreditation Requirement
Senate
Finance Committee chair Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley
(R-IA) have sent a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen
Sebelius urging “administrative discretion” in the enforcement of the Medicare
Part B Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS)
accreditation requirement for pharmacies. In response, National Community
Pharmacists Association (NCPA) executive vice president and CEO, Bruce T.
Roberts, RPh, issued the following statement:
“Two top
Senators sent a bipartisan message to HHS Secretary Sebelius: Avoid disrupting
seniors’ ability to purchase essential durable medical equipment.
“The Senators
recognize the DMEPOS accreditation requirement is onerous, expensive, and
duplicative for community pharmacies. Even those pharmacies that completed this
initial round of accreditation face another round in a few years. Worst of all,
the requirement singles out pharmacists while exempting 17 other medical
professionals.
“Senators
Baucus and Grassley are part of a large, bipartisan consensus in Congress
supportive of exempting pharmacies. Such a provision was included in both the
Senate and House health care reform bills. Congress also overwhelmingly approved
separate legislation to extend the deadline for accreditation from October 1 of
last year to January 1 of this year in anticipation of Congress working its will
in this matter.
“Efforts to
find a solution continue, which is why the letter’s message remains critical to
ensuring seniors don’t lose access to supplies that help improve their health.”
The final two
paragraphs of the Senator’s letter succinctly make the argument:
“Absent the
use of administrative discretion in implementing the accreditation requirement,
Medicare beneficiaries could lose access to diabetic test strips, canes,
walkers, nebulizers, wound care, and other vital medical products. Beneficiaries
in rural and underserved areas are particularly at risk for experiencing a
reduction in access to these medical supplies.
“We therefore
respectfully request that you use discretion in implementing the accreditation
requirement for pharmacies in a manner that preserves beneficiaries’ access to
medical supplies and equipment while Congress considers the best approach for
addressing this issue.”
The National
Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) represents America's community
pharmacists, including the owners of more than 22,700 independent community
pharmacies, pharmacy franchises, and chains. Together they represent an $88
billion health-care marketplace, employ over 65,000 pharmacists, and dispense
over 40 percent of all retail prescriptions. To learn more go to
www.ncpanet.org or read
NCPA’s blog, The Dose, at http://ncpanet.wordpress.com.
02/24/10
Statement from
the CHPA on Mississippi Bill
That Seeks to
Make Cold, Allergy Medicines
Containing
Pseudoephedrine Prescription-Only
The
following is a statement by Linda A. Suydam, DPA, president of the Consumer
Healthcare Products Association (CHPA):
"Today
(January 28), the Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill without
listening to any testimony that, if it becomes law, will greatly limit how cold
and allergy sufferers access some of their medicines. The legislation would
require law-abiding families to obtain a doctor's prescription for
pseudoephedrine- (PSE-) containing medicines rather than simply asking for these
medications at the pharmacy or service counter. Mississippi lawmakers seem
prepared to impose this burden on Mississippians, even though there is a better
solution.
"Mississippi's voters agree this is not the right way to address meth. As states
continually find themselves in dire financial situations, policy makers must
balance efforts to regulate ingredients used to create meth with the public
health and economic consequences of restricting access to important cold and
allergy medications. Electronic tracking is one such solution that eight other
states have adopted to fight domestic meth production while maintaining consumer
over-the-counter access to these products.
"An
e-tracking system is a tool that law enforcement and pharmacists can put in
place to stop the sale of illegal amounts of PSE as set forth by the Combat Meth
Act. With this real-time tracking system, states can also link up with other
states to track cross-border sales. For instance, neighboring Louisiana has
plans to implement e-tracking starting in March. Additionally, e-tracking would
be implemented at no cost to the state; the makers of PSE-containing products
would purchase and maintain the system for Mississippi.
"A CHPA-sponsored
survey conducted by David Binder Research last month found that almost
two-thirds of Mississippi voters surveyed (N=350) feel making common cold and
allergy medications containing pseudoephedrine available by prescription only
would be a big mistake, placing a heavy and unnecessary new burden on
law-abiding people, significantly increasing consumer costs, and hurting the
state's own finances at the worst possible time.
"Among other
findings:
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61 percent of those
surveyed would oppose laws that would require these medications be sold only by
prescription.
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74 percent of those
surveyed agree that an Rx-only requirement would create an 'unnecessary burden'
for law-abiding citizens; and
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59 percent of those
surveyed indicate they feel the legislative train is speeding forward too fast,
agreeing 'before my state's lawmakers enact a new law, they should study the
economic impact and societal burden a prescription law would pose.'
"This House
bill was passed before hearing any testimony or listening to the concerns of
constituents. We urge the state legislature to assess the deep burdens of this
bill and the proven alternative of e-tracking before placing such serious and
costly restriction on law-abiding Mississippians."
CHPA is the
129-year-old-trade association representing U.S. manufacturers and distributors
of over-the- counter medicines and nutritional supplements.
02/24/10
NCPA Backs Bill
to Improve Federal Employees’
Drug Benefit;
Offers Changes to Legislation
In
a letter to Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA), the National Community Pharmacists
Association’s (NCPA) Bruce T. Roberts, RPh, executive vice president and CEO,
offered support and recommendations for improving the recently introduced bill,
H.R. 4489, The FEHBP Prescription Drug Integrity, Transparency and Cost Savings
Act. Lynch’s bill expands the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) oversight
capabilities for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), which
includes prescription drug services. Rep. Lynch also chairs the subcommittee
with jurisdiction over FEHBP, and in the last year has held hearings on the
effectiveness the program.
In the
January letter, Roberts commends Lynch for including the following four
provisions designed to create greater transparency that could lead to savings in
the program:
·
Giving OPM access to data from drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers
(PBMs) on deals to promote the usage of certain drugs over others, and forcing
the PBMs to “pass through 99 percent of rebates earned on behalf of plan
sponsors” as opposed to keeping those resources to themselves.
·
Exposing mechanisms that reveal PBMs’ manipulation of the pricing structure “by
using different reimbursement bases for prescriptions dispensed by mail order
pharmacies compared to retail pharmacies,” which benefits PBMs since they own
mail order pharmacies.
·
Assuring that patients “receive the prescription drug actually prescribed by
their physician,” which would end the PBM drug switching unless “approved by the
provider and results in actual savings to the plan”.
·
Prohibiting PBM ownership of retail pharmacies to “eliminate the conflicts of
interest that are inherent when a manufacturer exerts a controlling interest in
a PBM or when a retail pharmacy owns a controlling interest in a PBM”.
If these
provisions were enacted they would represent a breakthrough at the federal level
by mitigating some of the more egregious PBM business practices and help create
momentum for more sweeping reform, explained Roberts. However, H.R. 4899 has
other provisions that should be amended to prevent unintended, but possibly
deleterious, consequences to pharmacies and their patients. Roberts explains in
the letter:
“There are
several areas of the bill which we would encourage be modified. The current
language establishes that the amount that the carrier plan may pay a PBM for a
prescription drug may not exceed the drug’s average manufacturer price (AMP).
The use of AMP as a pricing benchmark for the carrier, and in turn the pharmacy
provider, is problematic unless AMP were to be significantly redefined or
increased in such a way that truly reflects the retail pharmacy acquisition cost
of a prescription drug, which is higher than a drug’s current AMP. Moreover, use
of AMP would be inappropriate to pay for generic drugs because of the need for
reimbursement policies to encourage the use of generics.
“In addition,
the definition of AMP in the legislation is not appropriate because it includes
mail order sales. It should only reflect sales to retail pharmacies. Without
modification of these provisions, community pharmacy participation in the
program would be threatened, reducing patients’ access to prescription
medications.”
02/24/10
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