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The Southern Nevada Health District on Tuesday received its first shipment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine...The initial shipment of 15,478 doses of the vaccine manufactured by Moderna will be used by the health district to vaccinate front-line health care workers, according to a statement from the agency. It comes on the heels of the 27,675 doses of the Pfizer vaccine the district already has received...Clark County hospitals also will receive shipments of 15,478 Moderna doses over the coming week...READ MORE

...uninsured Nevadans can enroll for health coverage on the state-operated exchange, which this year features more carriers and plans...Insurance plans are available through online marketplace Nevada Health Link to those who don’t qualify for Medicaid or Medicare or don’t have insurance through an employer...“I don’t think that it comes as any surprise to anybody during this COVID era, there’s never been a more important time to connect to comprehensive health care,” Heather Korbulic, executive director of the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange, said...The 50 plans on the exchange, nearly twice as many as last year, cover COVID-19-related testing and diagnosis, she said. They are all so-called qualified health plans that encompass the 10 essential health benefits, including coverage of pre-existing conditions, mandated by the Affordable Care Act. Dental and vision plans also are available...READ MORE

Sisolak, his staff, officials from various state agencies met with representatives of the Southern Nevada and Washoe County health districts...to address the concerns the local health officials had raised in a letter last week about being shut out of the governor’s decision making process for COVID-19 directives, according to a joint statement from Sisolak and the local health officials...In their original letter, health officials said they received less than a day’s notice that the governor would increase the state’s gathering limit from 50 to 250, and allow for even larger crowds for sporting events and other live entertainment, with approval from local authorities. The health districts added that their resources are already strained from responding to the pandemic, and expressed frustration with the state adding more responsibility to their plate without discussing the issue with them...READ MORE

With opioid-related overdoses on the rise, health care providers try preparing everyday Nevadans to respond to a crisis..From January to May 2020, Nevada saw 23 percent more opioid-related overdose deaths than during the same period in 2019, and similar trends are being seen across the country...Opioid-related overdose deaths peaked in Nevada in 2011 and have been on the decline since then, but around the U.S., rates have been rising throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Medical Association released a report in mid-August citing news reports from 40 states and Washington, D.C. showing a rise in overdoses and illicit substance abuse since March...According to data from the Nevada Overdose Data to Action Program, there have been 197 opioid-involved drug overdose deaths in 2020 as of May 31, a 23 percent increase over the 160 counted in the first five months of 2019. April and May had the highest rates of overdose-related emergency room visits, with a 25 percent increase over the three months prior...READ MORE

University Medical Center became the first hospital in Nevada to administer the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, marking a major turning point...UMC began administering the vaccine at 11:45 a.m., and by 4 p.m., the hospital had vaccinated more than 200 frontline health care workers in line with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state, said UMC CEO Mason Van Houweling...ICU nurse Roshele Ward was the first UMC employee — and the first Nevadan — to be vaccinated...READ MORE

Development on the new UNLV Medical School building officially began...months ahead of schedule and still without originally earmarked monies from the state pulled due to budget cuts driven by the coronavirus pandemic...Maureen Schafer, the CEO of Nevada Health and Bioscience Corporation, said the developers are still in conversation with the governor’s office and the Legislature about making up the funding stream...“The way we look at this is, we as a development corporation made a commitment to the community, so we’re breaking ground, we’re going to move forward, because the care can’t stop,” Schafer said...READ MORE

Nevada health officials said they would resume the use of rapid “point of care” tests after federal health officials chided them for banning their use and accused them of violating federal law...Dr. Ihsan Azzam, Nevada’s chief medical officer, doubled down on his insistence that too many questions remained about the accuracy of rapid antigen tests. He said his team was “disappointed” in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services...“We are not saying the tests have no use, we are just saying pause for further review and additional training,”... Admiral Brett Giroir, assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, told reporters that federal law prohibits states from imposing a ban like the one that Nevada health officials ordered Oct. 2. He said Nevada is the only state to do so...READ MORE

Sam’s Club this week added Nevada and seven other states to its free prescription drug pilot program available to those without insurance at select Sam’s Club Pharmacy locations. The Plus member benefit, which was launched this year, increases the number of free prescriptions available in 30-day supplies to Plus members...New medications available at no cost in the program are: Lisinopril ; Metformin; Sertraline; Montelukast; and Amlodipine...The new medications are in addition to the following that had been free already: Donepezil; Pioglitazone; Escitalopram; Finasteride; Vitamin D2 50,000 IU...READ MORE

• Pharmacists’ Vital Role in Influenza Immunization in Nevada
• Proposed Amendments to Existing Regulations Permitting Pharmaceutical Technicians to Administer Immunizations
• National Pharmacy Compliance News
• FDA Recommends Health Care Providers Discuss Naloxone With Patients Receiving Opioids, OUD Treatment
• Proposed Rule to Require Electronic Submission of DEA Form 106
• Inappropriate FentaNYL Patch Prescriptions at Discharge for Opioid-Naïve, Elderly Patients
• SAMHSA Health Privacy Rule Revised to Better Integrate, Coordinate Care for Patients With SUD

Nevada’s group health insurance program for state employees consistently failed to seek competitive bids on nearly $96 million worth of contracts over the past four fiscal years, according to a recent state audit that also found examples of “wasteful spending” and state policies not being followed...An audit report released last week by the Legislative Counsel Bureau’s Audit Division into the contract management practices of the Public Employees Benefits Program...found that leadership of the health insurance program consistently failed to follow state laws and policies requiring contracts be put out to bid every four years, choosing instead to extend contracts in violation of normal practices for state agencies...The audit also found PEBP management often privately negotiated contract extensions without putting them out to a competitive bid, including one instance where one under-performing vendor had a contract extended and scope expanded after PEBP staff took paid trips to their headquarters at an estimated cost of more than $7,000...READ MORE