Friday, March 29, 2013

UPS pays $40M to end online pharmacies probe By PAUL ELIAS - Associated Press Friday, Mar. 29, 2013 | 10:44 AM Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/03/29/3235552/ups-pays-40m-to-end-online-pharmacies.html#storylink=cpy


SAN FRANCISCO -- Shipping company UPS has agreed to pay $40 million to end a federal criminal probe connected to its work for online pharmacies.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday that the Atlanta-based company would also "take steps" to block illicit online drug dealers from using their delivery service.
The DOJ says the fine amount is the money UPS collected from suspect online pharmacies.
UPS won't be charged with any crimes. Its biggest rival, FedEx Corp., has also been a target of the federal investigation.
The investigation of the two companies stems from a global campaign to shutter illicit online pharmacies launched in 2005. Since then, dozens of arrests have been made and thousands of websites closed worldwide as investigators continue to broaden the probe beyond the operators.

Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/03/29/3235552/ups-pays-40m-to-end-online-pharmacies.html#storylink=cpy

The FDA BLog has a must read--Disclosures in a Small Space: The FTC’s Revisions to .Com Disclosure

 Katie Bond –

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Somewhat later than anticipated, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has published a revised version of its guide, .Com Disclosures.  The FTC released the original guide 13 years ago, when mobile phones had not yet met the internet and social media barely existed.  In the new version of the guide, updated recommendations and new examples focus on how to craft disclosures given the smaller screen sizes of smartphones as compared to computers and the character and space limitations of most social media (e.g., the 140-character limit for Twitter tweets).
Clear & Conspicuous Requirement.  Under the FTC Act, if a disclosure is necessary to prevent a claim from being deceptive, then the disclosure must be “clear and conspicuous.”  The revised guide, like the 2000 version, continues to emphasize that advertisers should consider the following factors in determining whether an online disclosure is clear and conspicuous:

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FDA cites contamination issues in Delta compounding phamacy Mississippi State strengthening safety requirements


In the wake of contaminated steroid shots at New England Compounding Center linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak, the Food and Drug Administration has discovered problems at a Mississippi Delta compounding pharmacy.
Mississippi is now strengthening safety requirements. “We’re beefing up our compounding rules,” said Frank Gammill, executive director for the state Board of Pharmacy.
The FDA has accelerated inspections of compounding facilities across a dozen states. Last month, it visited the Cleveland facility run by the Illinois-based PharMEDium and reported that procedures designed to prevent contamination of drug products failed to include adequate validation of the sterilization process.
PharMEDium officials say patient safety is their highest priority and that none of the company’s products has been linked to a patient’s death. The New England center’s contamination is linked to 50 deaths.
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RI Compounding Issues Involved:: HEALTH Director Fine Denies License Restoration for Pharmacist Leo Blais' pharmacist license was reinstated just two days earlier, with restrictions. By Lauren CostaEmail the authorMarch 28, 2013




The RI Dept. of Health announced Monday the restoration of former state Sen. Leo Blais' pharmacist license, but with stipulations. Just two days later, HEALTH Director Michael D. Fine denied the restoration.
Last March, Director Fine suspended Blais' license indefinitely after a "dispensing error" at his East Greenwich pharmacy, Apothecare Compounding Solutions, resulted in a 2-year-old and an 11-month-old receiving multiple unintended doses of morphine.
The Dept. of Health also cited Blais for removing drugs from his pharmacy, to an unlicensed and unauthorized location during the RI flood event of 2010, as well as compounding prescription drugs in an environment not meeting standards; both allegations that he disputes. 
Last Friday, Blais accepted a court-ordered two-year suspension retroactive to March 23, 2012, with the second year of suspension stayed. His license was on probation during the second year and he was also forbidden from serving as a Pharmacist-in-Charge or an instructor during that period of time. Blais was also required to undergo 40 hours of training; 20 in the areas of law and ethics and 20 in the area of compounding.
In a letter sent to Administrative Hearing Officer Catherine Warren on Wednesday afternoon, Fine said he "disapproved of the Consent Order ratified by the Rhode Island Board of Pharmacy" that allowed Blais his license back.
According to the Health Dept., Fine took this action under the authority of Rhode Island General Law Chapter 5, Section 19.1-5, which requires all board actions to be approved by the director.
“After reviewing the Consent Order ratified by the Board of Pharmacy, I consider the agreement between the parties outlined in the order to be insufficient, given the facts leading to the Summary Suspension of Leo Blais,” Director Fine said.