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After AstraZeneca pledged not to profit off its COVID-19 shot during the pandemic, a report emerged that the drugmaker might be ready to declare the pandemic over as soon as July. But according to EVP and biopharma president Ruud Dobber, it’s still “too speculative” to predict when the vaccine may start earning money...The company is building a capacity of 3 billion doses for countries around the world, and it won’t be until after AZ delivers on its government supply deals that it might “feel open" to selling the vaccine commercially...READ MORE

The lawsuits, filed...in different federal courts, seek to get rid of an advisory opinion filed by the Department of Health and Human Services’ general counsel that says drug companies must offer 340B drugs to contract pharmacies, which are third-party entities that dispense drugs on behalf of hospitals participating in the program...The drug companies argue that the advisory opinion contracts (contradics) the statute for the 340B program, which requires manufacturers to offer discounted products to safety net hospitals and other providers in exchange for participation in Medicare and Medicaid...“The statute, on its face, does not require manufacturers to recognize any contract pharmacies, much less unlimited contract pharmacies,” the legal filing from AstraZeneca said...READ MORE

• ...one of the biggest trends in 2021 will be a focus on the safe use of medications...Reasons for this shift are many. For one, dispensing margins continue to shrink, which will reduce a pharmacist’s involvement and increase the responsibilities of pharmacy technicians. Additionally, society, via government mandates, is moving the industry to value-based payment versus fee-for-service health care models...
• ...continued adoption of virtual, telehealth, and digital health services and the electronic health record becoming more accessible digitally to pharmacies, nontraditional sites, and patients...“Additionally, the ongoing shortage of primary care physicians and the fact that many patients have not been seen by providers due to COVID-19 for their chronic medical conditions that most often require medications and dosage adjustment to achieve goals, presents a unique opportunity for pharmacists to be reimagined"...
• ...helping patients with medication adherence. Because comorbidities are risk factors for COVID-19, it is important that patients be adherent to their medications, especially for chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and COPD. Other priorities will include pharmacists taking on more responsibilities such as ordering and administering COVID-19 vaccines, making medication therapy recommendations to optimize patients’ drug regimens, and making drug substitutions when drug shortages occur...
• ...pharmacies turning over to a more advanced click and collect system in 2021, where patients will book in to collect medicine at specific time slots, rather than just show up...“This is likely to stop masses of people arriving at the same time, helping to keep a more controlled environment for prescription pick-ups,”... “Secondly, and slightly more difficult, will be a more common move towards delivery. Dealing with prescription drugs is a lot more sensitive than delivering somebody’s meal...READ MORE

In order to deliver COVID-19 vaccine to more people more quickly, the Trump administration intends to expedite rollout of its immunization partnership with pharmacies. The logic behind the concept is that getting vaccinated at a local pharmacy will be more accessible and efficient for many Americans than going to a hospital...READ MORE

Several pharma companies and the two leading industry trade groups are pausing political donations in the wake of the U.S. Capitol riots. They join a broad and growing coalition of businesses reevaluating donations and refusing to fund politicians who denied the presidential election results...Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson and Sanofi are among the pharma companies who have either canceled donations to some elected officials or are pausing to reconsider funding. They join dozens of companies across the business spectrum—including Amazon, AT&T, Google, Microsoft, Coca-Cola and J.P. Morgan—who have paused donations completely or cut ties to specific candidates for their false claims of election fraud...READ MORE

President Donald Trump's Operation Warp Speed promised 20 million COVID-19 vaccines administered to Americans by the end of 2020. Halfway into January, the rollout is still lagging behind those expectations...But President-elect Joe Biden's team is planning to shake up how doses are delivered after he takes office next week. Rather than holding back supply to ensure people can get their second doses, the Biden administration plans to release all available doses...It’s a departure from the Trump team’s approach at a time when the coronavirus vaccine rollout is failing to meet the pace needed to stem the pandemic...READ MORE

China will provide COVID-19 vaccines free of charge once they become available to general public, government authorities said...an official with China’s National Health Commission, told reporters that while manufacturing and transport of vaccines does have costs, the government will still be able to provide vaccines for free to individuals...“Our people don’t have to pay a single cent for the vaccine,”...READ MORE

Walgreens is establishing a tech-enabled healthcare startup with the goal of creating a new patient platform that blends physical and digital tools...The decision is part of a larger trend in the pharmacy space of retail chains aiming to expand their digital offerings...“We see an extremely complex healthcare system in the U.S. where the patients are confused,” said Walgreens Chief Financial Officer James Kehoe on the need for the startup. “Somebody with multiple conditions getting calls from three advisers.”...He added that “everybody has a point of view on how they manage their health. We believe we can, because of our assets, provide a unique interface between patients and partners to create an ecosystem of healthcare.”...READ MORE

Within the past two months, the online pharmacy marketplace has experienced some market-shifting dynamics that could alter the scope and direction of the industry. Within the span of approximately two weeks, e-commerce behemoth Amazon announced the launch of its NABP-accredited pharmacy website against the backdrop of Food and Drug Administration’s Importation of Prescription Drugs final rule becoming effective...The two updates highlight the growing chasm in the online pharmacy environment and continued threat to public health and patient safety by those who solely seek profit. With the entrance of Amazon Pharmacy comes a safe and legitimate source of prescription drugs via the internet, and an opportunity to raise the visibility of accredited pharmacies operating legitimately and within the confines of the law...READ MORE

AbbVie raised the list prices of many of its drugs on Jan. 1, while Biogen hiked the price tag of its old multiple sclerosis treatment Tysabri, part of broad, sector-wide increases typically taken at the start of a new year. The hikes could feature in calls for drug pricing legislation as a new Congress and new administration begin work...About 70 drugmakers raised prices to open 2021, averaging around 3.3%, lower than the average boost of 5.8% at the beginning of 2020...The effect on prices seen by consumers is likely to be more limited, however, since insurers negotiate discounts off list prices...READ MORE