Author: Peter

Canada’s main pharmaceutical (IMC) lobby group has urged the government not to wait for drug shortages before responding to U.S. plans to import Canadian drugs…the Trump administration announced on Wednesday that it would allow U.S. states and other groups to start pilot programs importing cheap drugs from Canada in an effort to lower drug costs...“Wholesalers should not be permitted to export drugs in bulk from Canada, and there should be strict and significant penalties for exporting drugs where their export is prohibited by law,”...“reliance on reactive measures after shortages occur may pose a risk to Canadian patients.”...READ MORE

Surescripts is upping its battle with Amazon-owned PillPack, accusing a third company of providing PillPack with patient prescription information “fraudulently,” and turning the matter over to the FBI. It’s the latest in a series of moves that could make it harder for Amazon to enter the prescription drug market...PillPack found a way to access its patients’ prescription information via a third-party called ReMy Health...Surescripts, which contracts with ReMy, said this represents “unauthorized access” to its network...READ MORE

Nicole Grassano, PTNN, Pharmacy Week in Review, this weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings and more.

STAT recently published our op-ed: State drug importation laws undermine the process that keeps our supply chain safe...there is no legal or operational way of transforming a drug packaged for a foreign market into a drug that meets the U.S. requirements of our in-progress track-and-trace system. What’s more, there is no way to alter the law to enable importation without undermining the law’s purpose and value...States can't wish away the requirements of a significant federal law. Either we have a secure drug supply chain or we don’t...READ MORE

• Why the U.S. is building a track-and-trace system
• How track-and-trace works
• Importation undermines the track-and-trace system
• Importation enables counterfeits
• Forgetting the lessons

CVS has a plan to win over millennials and it looks a lot like Amazon Prime: free home delivery of products...CVS announced...its CarePass program will expand nationwide...Pharmacy chains like CVS and Walgreens are fighting to stay relevant as consumers...shop online more and in physical stores less. Their business models rely on people buying toothpaste, vitamins and other convenience items in addition to filling their prescriptions...READ MORE

The health insurance company Anthem is making preparations to once again offer plans on the state exchange, a reversal of its decision to exit it two years ago over volatility in the individual health insurance marketplace...Health Plan of Nevada will continue to offer plans in just Clark, Washoe and Nye counties, while SilverSummit and Anthem will offer plans statewide...Anthem’s return would mean that rural Nevadans once again would have a choice of health insurance plans available to them on the state exchange...READ MORE

The Trump administration took a step...toward allowing importation of medicines from Canada, an action the president has advocated as a way to bring cheaper prescription drugs to Americans, but the pharmaceutical industry was quick to resist the move...The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it and the Food and Drug Administration will propose a rule that will allow it to authorize states and other groups to pursue pilot projects related to importing drugs from Canada...READ MORE

The Trump administration is proposing a rule that would require hospitals to publish the prices that are negotiated with insurers or risk being fined...The proposed rule...would apply to the roughly 6,000 hospitals that accept Medicare. Hospitals could be fined up to $300 a day if the standard and negotiated prices for services are not posted online...Starting this year, the administration required hospitals to publish list prices, or the sticker price. That does not reflect what someone might pay with insurance. The proposed rule would go a step further and require hospitals to also post the prices various insurance plans pay...“We’re trying to change the paradigm here,” Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma said...“We’re trying to ensure we have a competitive free market where providers can compete on cost and quality and patients have the information they need to seek high-quality providers.”...READ MORE

Laura Joszt, Managing Editor at The American Journal of Managed Care. Welcome to This Week in Managed Care from the Managed Markets News Network

After July 31, 2019, Renown Health will no longer accept Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. Anthem issued a termination notice in February of 2019...Both Renown and Anthem have said they were working toward a resolution but now time is up...READ MORE