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..Duexis is a combination of two old drugs, the generic equivalents of Motrin and Pepcid…If prescribed separately, the two drugs together would cost no more than $20 or $40 a month. By contrast, Duexis, which contains both in a single pill, costs about $1,500 a month…Needless to say, many insurers do not want to pay for Duexis. Yet sales of the drug are growing rapidly, in large part because its manufacturer, Horizon Pharma, has figured out a way to circumvent efforts of insurers and pharmacists to switch patients to the generic components, or even to the over-the-counter versions…It is called "Prescriptions Made Easy." Instead of sending their patients to the drugstore with a prescription, doctors are urged by Horizon to submit prescriptions directly to a mail-order specialty pharmacy affiliated with the drug company. The pharmacy mails the drug to the patient and deals with the insurance companies, relieving the doctor of the reimbursement hassle that might otherwise discourage them from prescribing such an expensive drug...Horizon is not alone. Use of specialty pharmacies seems to have become a new way of trying to keep the health system paying for high-priced drugs.

two steps…the president detailed in a memo all federal departments and agencies…providing prescriber training among federal health care professionals, a move that addresses concerns raised recently by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which noted that prescribing behavior was one of the biggest contributors to opioid abuse…need for patients to have access to treatments…Obama has directed federal agencies and departments to…facilitate easy access to health benefits and to find barriers to treatment for those with opioid uses issues.

On second thought, Pacira Pharmaceuticals, the FDA might just take it back...the agency has unpublished a warning letter to the company, issued last September, that took issue with the company's marketing practices…the FDA warning letter--now taken down from the agency website--Pacira had claimed that Exparel (bupivacaine), its pain drug and lead product, could work for up to three days at a time, though it's only approved for 24-hour pain relief… It would seem like a good old-fashioned pharma-government tussle over what companies can and cannot say about their products. But the argument has changed significantly, thanks to a series of court rulings that could open the door for drugmakers to market their products in previously unacceptable--even previously illegal--ways...

During an inspection of Qualgen’s facility in Edmond, Oklahoma, FDA investigators observed "insanitary conditions, including poor sterile production practices, which raise concerns about Qualgen’s ability to assure the sterility of drug products that it produced," said the agency…The FDA recommended the company cease sterile operations until it fixed the problems, but Qualgen agreed only to voluntarily recall 67 lots of drugs. The recalled products were compounded before September 1, 2015 and have not yet expired…The Food and Drug Administration said it is not aware of any adverse events associated with Qualgen’s products…

...House of Representatives’ Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health convened a hearing called "Examining Medicare Part D Medication Therapy Management Program."...aimed at figuring out the best ways to strengthen MTM model as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid roll out an overhaul… Rite Aid’s director of field clinical services… spoke in favor of expanding MTM…and highlighted recent efforts...which include the introduction of a bill…the Medication Therapy Management Empowerment Act that would increase access to MTM for patients with such chronic conditions as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol and COPD…given community pharmacist’s unique role as an easily accessible healthcare provider, they could be at the center of the expansion of MTM programs.

 23andMe announced the launch of a new consumer genetic test service…that will show whether an individual carries genes associated with 36 different disorders...The new test service…will allow healthy people to see if they carry a genetic variant related to 36 conditions that could be passed on to a child…cystic fibrosis...sickle cell anemia, Tay-Sachs disease and beta thalassemia…The service also provides non-medical details on traits like freckles or hair curliness as well as a person's lactose intolerance….23andMe, which is privately held, is backed by Google Inc and was valued at $1.1 billion in a recent round of venture capital funding.

Sharing electronic health records access between physicians and pharmacists can improve workflow efficiencies for both… that pharmacist involvement in patient’s medication therapy improves adherence and reduces costs. However, since it is not financially feasible for many physicians to employ full-time pharmacists, collaboration is often the best alternative…Sharing EHR access is one way that collaboration can benefit patients while simultaneously improving workflow efficiencies…Pharmacists were able to more readily collect data related to patients’ medical conditions, prescribed medications, lab data, and treatment plans. Communication between the pharmacists and providers was significantly enhanced...

Yesterday’s POS won’t cut it when it comes to providing a consistent experience across channels… retailers are struggling to unify their online and in-store experiences, with existing technology/infrastructure preventing them from moving forward with new omnichannel solutions… 77% of the surveyed retailers believe their legacy point-of-sale is preventing them from providing a consistent customer experience across channels…retailers…face significant challenges getting new technologies rolled out to stores and in helping employees respond to informed, smartphone-enabled shoppers. Key findings include:

• store and the digital experience must be brought together for a continuous, seamless experience
• getting new technologies rolled out to stores is a top challenge
• inventory insight across all channels is important
• real-time visibility into customer activity across all channels is important

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is shining light on steps that can be taken to prevent opioid abuse and misuse… CDC found that prescribing practices between states vary drastically… demographic differences between states do not entirely explain the variation...the CDC notes that the real way to fix the issue is to improve prescribing practices…A more comprehensive approach is needed to address the prescription opioid overdose epidemic, including guidance to providers on the risks and benefits of these medications…One of the largest contributors to opioid abuse is overprescribing done by a small number of prescribers whose prevalence is different between states…

...the IMS Institute has just snuck out an interesting report: Emergence and Impact of Pharmacy Deductibles: Implications for Patients in Commercial Health Plans. The report’s overarching theme is unsurprising: Higher out-of-pocket costs reduce patients’ adherence to drug therapy and increase prescription abandonment rates…The report’s major contribution, however, links the growth in pharmacy deductibles to manufacturers’ copayment offset programs, which cover a beneficiary’s out-of-pocket costs for a brand-name drug. High deductible plans are shifting costs from payers to consumers and—in many cases—back to manufacturers.