Author: Peter

.....the skill sets that contemporary community pharmacists need to routinely and effectively provide CMM services in today’s health care system include current and comprehensive therapeutic knowledge (the foundation for all other skills), critical thinking, problem solving, decision making, interpersonal communication (verbal and written), teamwork (collaboration with other providers), motivational interviewing, health coaching, and documentation skills.

Ralph Neas, president and CEO of the Generic Pharmaceutical Association, issued a statement Monday criticizing the FDA at the organization’s public meeting on the Generic Drug User Free Act. “It is industry opinion that the FDA is falling short of meeting its commitment to GDUFA goals, resulting in decreased access for patients and billions of dollars in lost savings,”....

Stratos Genomics Inc, ... announced today the successful demonstration of nanopore sequencing with their proprietary expandable nucleotides (X-NTP™) utilizing a novel single molecule detection method. ….“It can enable low cost, rapid, more accurate and targeted and whole genome sequencing, dropping the price into a range that is accessible by essentially everyone,”.....

Should Anthem's Swedish be out of a job? Should Joseph Swedish, the CEO who was at the helm of health insurer Anthem when it suffered a historic data breach, be fired? The fact that he and other senior execs are still on board shows a lack of accountability.....

Could lead to fraud and abuse, incomplete documentation, industry group argues. More than one ICD-10 bill has been introduced in Congress recently aiming to create a "safe harbor" for physician claims denial post-switchover. But the Coalition for ICD-10 has put forth six reasons why such a plan would have "far-reaching, negative consequences."

..... specialty pharmacy may very well represent the future lifeblood of independent pharmacy — especially as health systems and payers become more inclined to direct prescription traffic toward pharmacy operators ready to deliver better outcomes for their patients...... independents face significant hurdles entering the specialty business, and more challenges competing within that space once they're there.

The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association today released a new ad campaign in New York — "I'm Not Willing to Send My Patients to Just Any Pharmacy" — highlighting a new survey of specialty physicians in New York that finds only two percent think all drugstores have the "expertise and capability" to provide specialty medications to patients.

When pharmacists graduate from pharmacy school, their goals are to improve patient outcomes, create world-class customer service, and make lives better. But, over time, those goals morph into not getting fined, sued, or fired.  What happened to professional judgment and common sense?

A Florida hospital physician group is launching an mHealth platform to enhance care and treatment for Medicare patients.... they will employ a mobile chronic management platform, by Smartlink Mobile Systems, focused on helping providers meet Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' requirements for chronic care management.

Compliance with the United States Pharmacopeia chapter <800> is on the horizon, and pharmacists everywhere should know what to expect with these standards for handling hazardous drugs in their facilities.