Friday, November 30, 2018

22 nonprofit healthcare leaders who sit on pharma boards

Becker's Hospital Review-3 hours ago
Twelve of the 19 largest pharmaceutical and biotech companies have at least one director serving on their board who simultaneously serves in a leadership 

Florida claims Walgreens, CVS are complicit in opioid crisis, adds ...

Finger Lakes Times-Nov 29, 2018
The two pharmacy giants, which have more than 1,500 locations between them across the state, broke Florida law by ignoring suspicious orders "all while .

Little punishment from state for CVS over improper HIV mailing

The Columbus Dispatch-9 hours ago
The Ohio Department of Health says pharmacy giant CVS mishandled patient information in 2017 when it send out a mailing to more than 4,000 participants in a .

Express Scripts' Miller says Washington at incredible moment on drug ...

CNBC-Nov 29, 2018
When the Trump administration outlined its drug pricing blue print last summer, pharmacy benefit managers seemed to be squarely in the cross hairs for reform.

Former pharmacy owner — including one in Stanleytown — who ...

Martinsville Bulletin-4 hours ago
A judge ordered the former owner of a Southwest Virginia pharmacy chain to make financial amends, pay a fine and go to prison for cheating the government out .

Independent pharmacies fight to survive in Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs Gazette-21 hours ago
With a pharmacy in every grocery store, and Walgreens and CVS locations dotting the local landscape, you might think things are tough these days for small, ..

As Amazon moves into the pharmacy business, licensing efforts gain ...

STAT-51 minutes ago
As Amazon moves into the pharmacy business, licensing efforts gain scrutiny ... Earlier this year, PillPack sought a pharmacy license in New Mexico, but an .

Tying Drug Prices To What Other Countries Pay: A Pioneering Way To ...

Kaiser Health News-7 hours ago
It was never formally approved by the FDA; instead, LEMS patients pay about $300 to $500 a month to get the drug from a compounding pharmacy. That, or ..

'A loss for the rest of us': An FDA approval is a boon for a drug maker ...

STAT-11 hours ago
It was never formally approved by the FDA; instead, LEMS patients pay about $300 to $500 a month to get the drug from a compounding pharmacy. That, or ...

State-Sanctioned Secrecy Shields Scrutiny of Texas' Death Penalty ...

The Texas Observer-7 minutes ago
On Wednesday, Buzzfeed News reported that Texas buys execution drugs from Greenpark Compounding Pharmacy in Houston, which state health officials .

Doctor Charged With Prescribing Controlled Substances for Sexual ...

Shoals Insider-3 hours ago
The drugs Roberts prescribed include Adderall, a drug used to treat attention deficit ... plans of over $10.5 million in fraudulently billed compounded drugs.

Fultondale doctor charged in 103-count indictment alleging healthcare ...

AL.com-22 hours ago
A Fultondale doctor is charged with prescribing several drugs, including oxycodone, ... plans of more than $10.5 million in fraudulently billed compounded drugs.

The DQSA: Five Years In - Part One of Two

The DQSA: Five Years In - Part One of Two

JD Supra (press release)-21 hours ago
Title I, the Compounding Quality Act (CQA), primarily responded to an acute public health crisis that was caused by the distribution of contaminated steroidal .

Fla. Pharmacist Gets 6½ Years For Bogus Claims For Creams

Law360-20 hours ago
Robinson was one of three owners of ASC Pharmacy Inc., a defunct compounding pharmacy in Miami where she was the pharmacist in charge, according to the 

Plot to defraud Tricare stacks up guilty pleas; Arkansas man 6th to plead

Arkansas Online-11 hours ago
Duke promoted prescription pain cream, scar cream and supplements for a Mississippi-based compounding pharmacy, which paid him a share of whatever the ...

Meningitis outbreak trial: Consultant says NECC skimped on critical ...

The Tennessean-22 hours ago
The expert, who also has served as a consultant to federal prosecutors, said the New England Compounding Center also failed to comply with national ...

Bayer to cut loose animal health, consumer brands and 12,000 jobs in huge shakeup Thursday, November 29, 2018

Bayer to cut loose animal health, consumer brands and 12,000 jobs in huge shakeup

At last, after back-and-forth speculation and denials, Bayer has revealed it will indeed cast off its animal health unit, a few consumer health brands and 12,000 jobs amid a large-scale restructuring that touches every area of its business

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Texas Board of Pharmacy Disciplinary Action Summaries & Remedial Plans

Disciplinary Action Summaries & Remedial Plans


Click here to view the disciplinary action summaries discussed and/or entered at the November 6, 2018 Board Meeting.

Click here to view the remedial plans discussed and/or entered at the November 6, 2018 Board Meeting.

Texas Board of Pharmacy Adopted and Proposed Rules During the November 6, 2018 Meeting

Adopted and Proposed Rules


Several TSBP Board Rules were adopted and proposed during the Board Meeting on November 6, 2018. You may view a summary of the adopted and proposed rules here.

NOTE: TSBP now has a location on the website where you can monitor adopted and proposed rule changes. Please note that rule changes are not reflected immediately after a Board Meeting, but are posted as they become available in the Texas Register. For more information, click here

'Texas 7' death row inmate asks for reprieve after media reports on ...

Chron.com-5 hours ago
Citing unidentified documents, the report names the Houston compoundingpharmacy believed to be one of two that mixes up the batches of pentobarbital used .

Department of Justice Announces: South Florida Pharmacist Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison for Role in $3.4 Million Compounding Pharmacy Scheme

Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, November 29, 2018

South Florida Pharmacist Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison for Role in $3.4 Million Compounding Pharmacy Scheme

A pharmacist licensed by the State of Florida was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for her participation in a scheme involving the payment of approximately $3.4 million in fraudulent claims by TRICARE, Medicare, and private insurance programs for compounded creams that were medically unnecessary, procured through illegal kickbacks, and otherwise not eligible for reimbursement. 
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office and Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General – Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS)’s Southeast Field Office made the announcement.
Marjorie Robinson, 61, of Wilton Manors, Florida, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore of the Southern District of Florida.  Chief Judge Moore also ordered Robinson to pay $$3,400,000  in restitution, jointly and severally with her co-conspirators, and to forfeit the same amount.  Robinson pleaded guilty in September 2018 to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to admissions made as part of her plea agreement, from approximately 2013 to 2016, Robinson was a one-third owner of A.S.C. Pharmacy, Inc. (ASC), a now-defunct compounding pharmacy in Miami where Robinson worked as the pharmacist-in-charge.  Under Robinson’s ownership and direction, ASC designed and manufactured compounded creams by selecting certain ingredients not based on individualized patient need, but rather to maximize financial reimbursement to ASC from government and private insurance programs.  To carry out the fraudulent scheme, Robinson agreed with her co-conspirators to pay kickbacks to doctors and patient recruiters in exchange for prescriptions for ASC’s medically unnecessary compounded creams and to waive patient co-payments.  As a result of fraudulent claims submitted in connection with the scheme, TRICARE, Medicare and private insurance programs paid ASC approximately $3.4 million.   
Robinson was charged along with co-defendants Laszlo Teleszky, M.D., 68, of New Port Richey, Florida; Sheila Arucri, 57, of Davie, Florida; and Todd Schreier, 34, of Russell, Kentucky.  Teleszky, Arcuri and Schreier each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.  Teleszky and Arucri were sentenced on Nov. 27 to serve 16 months and 12 months and one day in prison, respectively.  Schreier is awaiting sentencing.
Ascanio Serna Jr. and Ascanio Serna Sr., both additional co-owners of ASC, were charged separately in this case.  Ascanio Serna Jr. pleaded guilty in August 2017 and was sentenced to serve 64 months in prison.  Ascanio Serna Sr. pleaded guilty in August 2018 and was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison.
The FBI, HHS-OIG, and DCIS investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.  Trial Attorney David Snider of the Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 14 strike forces operating in 23 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $14 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Topic(s): 
Health Care Fraud
Press Release Number: 
18-1572

First lady Melania Trump calls opioid epidemic 'worst drug crisis in history' Maria Puente, USA TODAY Published 1:53 p.m. ET Nov. 28, 2018


https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2018/11/28/melania-trump-says-opioids-worst-drug-crisis-ever-town-hall/2137303002/

Walgreens pays Fred's $68M

Memphis Business Journal-20 hours ago
Fred's is continuing to offload its pharmacy inventory and patient prescription files to Walgreens. The discount merchandise and pharmacy chain announced in ...

California pharmacist faces abuse, privacy invasion charges after ...

Becker's Hospital Review-21 hours ago
A fired pharmacist who worked for Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente faces charges that he set up a camera in a pharmacy lab bathroom and secretly ..

Is Filling a Prescription Simple? — Pharmacist errors can cost lives

JD Supra (press release)-17 hours ago
Pharmacy and Pharmacist error. A patient diagnosed with thyroid problems filled a prescription for the drug levothyroxine. It was written by the doctor for 75 ...

Virginia moves to limit mail-order specialty pharmacies following ...

Richmond.com-15 hours ago
These pharmacies, which focus on high-cost medication therapies to treat serious, complex conditions, such as cancer or rare diseases, are growing in .

CVS plans changes to stores after Aetna deal

USA TODAY-17 hours ago
Merlo said he envisions the "CVS Pharmacy evolving from not just a store that happens to have a pharmacy and products" into "more of a health care destination ...

CBD stores are popping up all over Pittsburgh. When will our laws ...

NEXTpittsburgh-17 hours ago
The most famous of these compounds is, of course, Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) ... neighborhood institutions like Schiller's Pharmacy in Shadyside and Murray ...

Advancements in Veterinary Science and Increasing Government ...

Latest Market Reports By Abhishek Budholiya (press release) (blog)-8 hours ago
Mounting concerns over the provision of illicit drugs in developing and ... This also includes illegal autogenous vaccines and compounded pharmaceuticals.

Vitals

Axios-3 hours ago
Greenpark, in Texas, has been cited for a 48 safety lapses in the past 8 years, and had its license suspended in 2016 after compounding the wrong drug and ..

Inmates Said The Drug Burned As They Died. This Is How Texas Gets ...

BuzzFeed News-16 hours ago
But documents obtained by BuzzFeed News indicate that one source is Greenpark Compounding Pharmacy in Houston, which has been cited for scores of ...

Nurse practitioner pleads guilty in $65 mln compounded-drug Tricare ...

Reuters-15 hours ago
A Tennessee nurse practitioner has pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme that defrauded the military healthcare program Tricare into paying more than $65 ...

Report: Houston-based pharmacy is supplier of state's execution drugs

Texas Tribune-11 hours ago
Greenpark Compounding Pharmacy has been selling Texas drugs for lethal injections for three and a half years, according to a Buzzfeed News report.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

CVS Health and Aetna close $69 billion merger 
CVS Health and Aetna closed their $69 billion merger on Wednesday, bringing together one of the nation's largest pharmacy chains and one of the largest health insurers in a deal that transforms the healthcare landscape.  READ MORE

WADA opens Moscow stage of Russian doping investigation

Sport24-Nov 27, 2018
Moscow - A team of experts sent by the World Anti-Doping Agency will meet Russian officials in Moscow on Wednesday to begin the process of recovering data .

WADA experts hold talks in Moscow about doping lab data

Charlotte Observer-7 hours ago
A delegation from the World Anti-Doping Agency held talks with Russian authorities in Moscow on Wednesday as it tries to access data which could mean more ...

How "Cobra Sexual Energy" Got the US Supreme Court All Hot and ...

Inverse-19 hours ago
The dramatically named supplement recently fell so short of its promise to ... in the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), that ...

Check With a Medical Professional Before Taking Dietary ...

Digital Journal-1 hour ago
​​Knowing what to believe about dietary supplements can be difficult; often claims are made about the supplement with little to no research to actually back

Dietary Supplement & Cosmetics Legal Bulletin l November 2018

JD Supra (press release)-17 hours ago
JAMA has published several articles calling for increased scrutiny of dietarysupplements and their ingredients. An October 2, 2018, op-ed describes a study on .

FDA warns against using Rhino male enhancement products

wtvr.com-19 hours ago
Due to a recent rise in reported health issues, the US Food and Drug ... drug products that are frequently misrepresented as dietary supplements and that ...

Pharmacist sentenced in health care fraud scheme

WLOX-1 hour ago
HATTIESBURG, MS (WDAM) - A Mississippi pharmacist was sentenced Tuesday in federal court for his role in the largest health care fraud case ever in ..

CVS-Aetna merger set to close this week

Journal Inquirer-21 hours ago
Supporters of that trend have said greater coordination between insurers and pharmacy companies will streamline operations and lead to better, less expensive ...

Winners, losers amid CMS' proposed prescription drug policy changes

Becker's Hospital Review-21 hours ago
Pharmacy benefit managers. The rule would also favor PBMs because they will get "incremental negotiating leverage." Before, PBMs had no power to negotiate

PSA gets share of $23 million government funding

Pharmacy News-7 hours ago
Welcoming the funding, PSA president Dr Shane Jackson said the association believed pharmacists' expertise could be better used to meet the health care .

Boots worker sues pharmacy giant for £10k after getting in trouble for ...

The Scottish Sun-2 hours ago
A FORMER Boots employee has successfully sued the pharmacy for £10,000 after being disciplined for joking that half of Nairn was on antidepressants. Annette .

Hospitals regularly prescribe opioids on discharge 'just in case'

Pharmacy News-13 hours ago
An analysis of hospital pharmacy practices surrounding opioids has also revealed less than 10% of hospitals provide GPs with a pain management plan or 

US FDA finds traces of heavy metals in kratom products

MD Linx-7 minutes ago
Reuters Health News | November 28, 2018. The US Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it had found high levels of heavy metals such as lead and 

Progressive Care Signs Letter of Intent to Purchase Florida Based ...

Associated Press (press release)-47 minutes ago
On November 27, 2018, Progressive Care executed a letter of intent to purchase a Florida based pharmacy with locations in Davie and Orlando, Florida.

Edmund Pezalla: Pharmacy benefit managers keeping drug costs down

Tribune-Review-14 hours ago
Recently, the Pennsylvania auditor general and Pennsylvania lawmakers have taken a deeper dive into how pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, operate in 

Pre-printed prescription forms used: Man pleads guilty to defrauding U.S. of $550,000 in Little Rock-based scheme

Man pleads guilty to defrauding U.S. of $550,000 in Little Rock-based scheme: A Nashville, Tenn., man on Monday became the fifth person to plead guilty in a Little Rock-based multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud Tricare, the U.S. military's health insurer.






The San Diego Union-Tribune

Man pleads guilty to defrauding US of $550000 in Little Rock-based ...

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (blog)-5 hours ago
... conspired to generate Tricare-covered prescriptions for compounded drugs for his and his co-conspirators' financial benefit. Three more people pleaded guilty ...