- Congress Considers Targeting Secondary Patents on Prescription Drugs (heartland.org)
In another sign of growing impatience with the high cost of prescription drugs, bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House that would limit pharmaceutical companies’ ability to delay the entry of generic drugs into the market...The Terminating the Extension of Rights Misappropriated Act targets the practice of “evergreening,” in which pharmaceutical companies make minor changes to a drug and file a new patent on those miniscule modifications in order to extend their exclusivity and maintain high prices...READ MORE
- Drug industry urges Canada to act early on U.S. import plan (reuters.com)
Canada’s main pharmaceutical (IMC) lobby group has urged the government not to wait for drug shortages before responding to U.S. plans to import Canadian drugs…the Trump administration announced on Wednesday that it would allow U.S. states and other groups to start pilot programs importing cheap drugs from Canada in an effort to lower drug costs...“Wholesalers should not be permitted to export drugs in bulk from Canada, and there should be strict and significant penalties for exporting drugs where their export is prohibited by law,”...“reliance on reactive measures after shortages occur may pose a risk to Canadian patients.”...READ MORE
- Week in Review: Investigational HIV drug May Extend Protection Against the Infection for 1 Year; Top Motivators for PharmD Candidates Revealed (pharmacytimes.com)
Nicole Grassano, PTNN, Pharmacy Week in Review, this weekly video program provides our readers with an in-depth review of the latest news, product approvals, FDA rulings and more.
- Our STAT Op-Ed: Drug Importation Can’t Coexist with U.S. Track-and-Trace Law (drugchannels.net)
STAT recently published our op-ed: State drug importation laws undermine the process that keeps our supply chain safe...there is no legal or operational way of transforming a drug packaged for a foreign market into a drug that meets the U.S. requirements of our in-progress track-and-trace system. What’s more, there is no way to alter the law to enable importation without undermining the law’s purpose and value...States can't wish away the requirements of a significant federal law. Either we have a secure drug supply chain or we don’t...READ MORE
- Why the U.S. is building a track-and-trace system
- How track-and-trace works
- Importation undermines the track-and-trace system
- Importation enables counterfeits
- Forgetting the lessons
- Medicare to cover expensive cancer cell therapies (reuters.com)
...Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services...said it has finalized a decision to cover expensive cancer cell therapies sold by Gilead Sciences Inc and Novartis AG...CMS...said it will cover the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved therapies when provided in healthcare facilities that have programs in place to track patient outcomes...The nationwide decision clears up “a lot of confusion” about coverage and will help patients get access to the novel therapies...CMS Administrator Seema Verma said...READ MORE
- After backing out two years ago, Anthem prepares to return to health insurance exchange (thenevadaindependent.com)
The health insurance company Anthem is making preparations to once again offer plans on the state exchange, a reversal of its decision to exit it two years ago over volatility in the individual health insurance marketplace...Health Plan of Nevada will continue to offer plans in just Clark, Washoe and Nye counties, while SilverSummit and Anthem will offer plans statewide...Anthem’s return would mean that rural Nevadans once again would have a choice of health insurance plans available to them on the state exchange...READ MORE
- Trump firms up plan to import medicines; pharma companies resist (reuters.com)
The Trump administration took a step...toward allowing importation of medicines from Canada, an action the president has advocated as a way to bring cheaper prescription drugs to Americans, but the pharmaceutical industry was quick to resist the move...The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it and the Food and Drug Administration will propose a rule that will allow it to authorize states and other groups to pursue pilot projects related to importing drugs from Canada...READ MORE
- CMS finalizes plan to boost wage index for rural hospitals (fiercehealthcare.com)
The Trump administration released a final rule...that boosts Medicare payments to rural hospitals in a bid to address major inequalities...The rules included an increase to the wage index for certain low-wage hospitals such as those in rural areas..."The changes we’re finalizing in today’s rule are long overdue and improve the way Medicare pays hospitals, which will help many rural hospitals maintain their healthcare labor force," CMS Administrator Seema Verma...READ MORE
- This Week in Managed Care: August 2, 2019 (ajmc.com)
Laura Joszt, Managing Editor at The American Journal of Managed Care. Welcome to This Week in Managed Care from the Managed Markets News Network
- Renown Health no longer accepting Anthem BCBS (kolotv.com)
After July 31, 2019, Renown Health will no longer accept Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. Anthem issued a termination notice in February of 2019...Both Renown and Anthem have said they were working toward a resolution but now time is up...READ MORE