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Nevada health officials reported Monday that about 1 in 6 people statewide has received at least a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine since shots became available in mid-December...“I do think progress is starting to finally click and continue to increase,” said James English, COVID-19 response operations chief in Washoe County, where state statistics show 16.8% of residents have received their first shot and 9.8% have been fully vaccinated...READ MORE

Alexa, show me the future of drug advertising? Bayer Consumer Health's first-ever Alexa interactive ad allows consumers to buy an OTC product by talking to the Amazon device—and may foreshadow broader trends in the industry...The U.K. ad for Bayer’s Berocca Boost, a vitamin and caffeine tablet, is running as a trial during programming streamed by Global...Launching the app brings up voice options to either order the product or hear more information about it. If the listener chooses to order, Alexa asks whether they’d like to use a default payment method and address. One yes later, Berrocca Boost is on its way and the original radio program returns...While dropping an OTC product into an Amazon cart via voice app is a long way from fulfilling a physician-ordered prescription medicine the same way, the Bayer trial foreshadows what's possible even in the more regulated pharma world...READ MORE

The first single-dose Covid-19 vaccine, a shot from Johnson & Johnson, was authorized for use...the third issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, will give health authorities a desperately needed new source of doses as they scramble to ramp up inoculations ahead of elusive emerging strains...J&J said it has begun shipping the vaccine to the U.S. government, which is managing allocation and distribution. That indicates first doses could be administered during the coming week...READ MORE

Nevada health officials are still awaiting answers about why the state has one of the nation’s lowest COVID-19 vaccine allocations from the federal government...As of this week, the state remained ranked among the bottom 10 states in terms of vaccine allocation per capita. It had received about 21,070 first doses per 100,000 adult residents...READ MORE

Manufacturing capacity and ingredients shortages are the main bottlenecks to expanding COVID-19 vaccine production, several global drug groups said...not patents that some critics are demanding be removed...“IP (intellectual property) rights is not the issue,” said Thomas Cueni, who heads the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations...“The bottlenecks are the capacity, the scarcity of raw materials, scarcity of ingredients, and it is about the know-how.”...READ MORE

Gilead Sciences’ new business service center is a win for North Carolina but comes with some losses for the company's home state of California...The Foster City-based pharma plans to cut 178 jobs in California effective May 30...It’s “the latest example of a major Bay Area company moving workers to a cheaper location”...Half of the jobs are expected to shift to Gilead's now-underway Research Triangle Park service center in North Carolina...Under a North Carolina economic development and jobs grant program, Gilead can earn up to $10 million in reimbursement payments over 12 years through the project. North Carolina estimates it will see an annual economic gain of more than $39 million...READ MORE

The Food and Drug Administration advisory committee endorsed Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine late Friday afternoon...The vaccine appears widely effective against the virus and is especially good at preventing severe cases...And because the vaccine is given as a single dose and is easy to ship, it presents an appealing profile for public health officials struggling to vaccinate hard-to-reach or skeptical populations...READ MORE

A large majority of American adults prefer to get their prescription drugs from a local pharmacist instead of a mail order service, mainly because of the personal relationship, according to a new national survey released today by the National Community Pharmacists Association...“Most Americans clearly are not willing to substitute personal care for the perception of convenience,”...When asked why, 36 percent say their pharmacist knows them better than a mail order company. Thirty-two percent say their pharmacist answers questions and provides counsel on how to use the drugs. Another 15 percent worry their drugs will get lost in the mail, exposed to the elements, or stolen...READ MORE

CVS, Walgreens and Walmart are enrolling customers in patient systems in order for them to book vaccine appointments...Perk of data allows these chains to use information to promote their stores and services, which includes coupons and promotions, and tailor marketing...After customers create profiles for Walgreens, they get marketing emails and agree to let Walgreens 'automatically collect information about you'...READ MORE

Nevada on Thursday reported higher-than-average tallies of new coronavirus cases and additional fatalities over the preceding day...Updated figures from the Department of Health and Human Services posted to the state’s coronavirus website showed 571 new coronavirus cases and 14 additional deaths from Wednesday’s report. That brought cumulative totals for the state to 292,630 cases and 4,933 deaths...READ MORE