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The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine takes another hit to its safety profile as the European Medicines Agency adds a new side effect to the label of its shot…The EMA identified a rare blood condition, capillary leak syndrome, as a potential side effect of AstraZeneca’s Vaxzevria. The condition causes plasma leaks from blood vessels into neighboring body cavities and muscles. Blood pressure experiences a sharp drop as a result, and, left untreated, the disorder can lead to organ failure and death…READ MORE

A third member of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee has resigned in protest over the agency’s approval of Biogen’s Aduhelm (aducanumab) for Alzheimer’s disease...As was reported yesterday, two members, David S. Knopman...and Joel S. Perlmutter...resigned in protest earlier this week...Now, Aaron Kesselheim...has stepped down...“My rationale was that the FDA needs to re-evaluate how it solicits and uses the advisory committees … because I didn’t think that the firm recommendations from the committee in this case … were appropriately integrated into the decision-making process,” Kesselheim told Reuters...READ MORE

Dozens of Nevadans fully vaccinated against COVID-19 have been hospitalized after contracting rare breakthrough cases of the disease, state health officials reported in new data...The majority of the 51 cases were white, male, and age 70 and older, among those most at risk of severe infections. But 32 of the patients showed no symptoms of COVID-19 infection, according to the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services data...health officials had reported at least two deaths among 186 breakthrough cases...READ MORE

A former pharmacist in Wisconsin who intentionally tampered with more than 500 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine was sentenced to three years in prison on Tuesday. Steven Brandenburg, 46, pleaded guilty in February to two felony counts of attempting to tamper with a consumer product...He had admitted to intentionally removing the doses manufactured by Moderna from a refrigerator for hours at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, located just north of Milwaukee...READ MORE

Discounted purchases under the program reached at least $38 billion in 2020. That figure is an astonishing 27% higher than its 2019 counterpart—and more than quadruple the value of discounted purchases in 2014…The 340B program’s size now exceeds the Medicaid program’s outpatient drug sales—and accounts for nearly 20% of the total rebates and discounts that manufacturers provide for brand-name drugs. Alas, many elements of the 340B program—including its controversial contract pharmacy component—lack a comprehensive regulatory infrastructure…READ MORE

State lawmakers in Oregon have tried to lower high drug prices from nearly every angle: They’ve sought to cap how much people can pay for insulin, install a panel that could determine how much state agencies should pay for medicines, and even import drugs in bulk from Canada. Nearly every proposal has failed...One reason, at least according to the effort’s supporters: Two-thirds of the state legislature accepted at least one campaign check from the drug industry during the 2020 election cycle...READ MORE

Other recommendations include boosting local production, promoting research and development, and creating robust quality management maturity...The White House and several federal agencies...released a series of policy recommendations for addressing the vulnerabilities in U.S. pharmaceutical supply chains...The review came in response to an executive order signed by President Joe Biden...that directed the government to identify risks, address vulnerabilities and develop a strategy to promote supply chain resilience throughout sectors...READ MORE

One reason why Medicaid isn't so good is that many doctors won't actually accept Medicaid patients...If you rely upon the health insurance system for the poor, you'll likely not be able to get medical treatment in many places. Seeing as medical coverage is designed to provide access to treatment when needed, the system doesn't seem to work all that well. This is not a good thing. After all, a bit of bad luck, and one of us could be relying on Medicaid...READ MORE

Nevada prison officials...disclosed that they want to use a never-before-tried combination of drugs for the state’s first lethal injection in 15 years, including the powerful opioid fentanyl, the sedative ketamine and a heart-stopping salt, potassium chloride...An execution manual provided to a federal judge ahead of a possible late-July death date for convicted mass killer Zane Michael Floyd said a similar-acting drug, alfentanil, might substitute for fentanyl and potassium acetate might substitute for potassium chloride...U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware II said he may issue a stay of execution by the end of the month to allow time to review the choice of drugs and the 65-page Execution Manual...READ MORE

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has recently released its employment and salary data for 2020. That means it’s time to update Drug Channels Institute’s annual analysis of pharmacist salaries and employment...We have found that the share of pharmacists who work at hospitals reached a new high. What’s more, average base salaries for retail pharmacists have dropped, while salaries have risen for pharmacists employed by hospitals, physician offices, and other non-retail settings...READ MORE