Suits against Genoa clinic in works Michigan Pain Specialists given six months to reach financial settlements with victims of tainted steroids

At least 14 people injected with tainted steroids at Michigan Pain Specialists could take the Genoa Township clinic to court if an out-of-court agreement isn’t reached by October.

Rochester attorney Alyson Oliver mailed a notice of intent to file suit against the clinic April 3, starting the clock on a six-month window for the parties to reach financial settlements.

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Unused dose of Oklahoma execution drugs to be tested - World News

OKLAHOMA CITY — Drugs readied for the second of two planned back-to-back executions in Oklahoma will be tested as part of an investigation into the first execution, which was halted after the inmate convulsed and tried to lift his head.

The state attorney general’s office said the Department of Corrections saved the lethal drugs set aside for Charles Warner’s execution, which was stayed for two weeks, after an injection given to Clayton Lockett went awry Tuesday night.

President Barack Obama called the incident deeply troubling and said today that he has asked his attorney general for a review of the death penalty’s application.

Lockett died of an apparent heart attack 43 minutes after his execution began as Oklahoma used a new drug combination for the first time.

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Fairness to Pet Owners Act introduced in Congress would require a veterinarian to provide a client with a written prescription, whether or not requested by the client.

Mandatory prescription bill reintroduced in Congress – take action now

On February 10, Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT-4th) reintroduced the so-called “Fairness to Pet Owners Act” (H.R. 4023), which applies to drugs prescribed for domesticated household animals. Like its predecessor in the previous Congress, HR 1406, the bill would require a veterinarian to provide a client with a written prescription, whether or not requested by the client. The bill goes further, and would require the veterinarian to provide a copy of the prescription by electronic or other means, if requested by a pharmacy or a designee of the pet owner. Finally, the veterinarian would be prohibited from charging any fee for writing the prescription or asking a client to sign a liability waiver related to writing the prescription.
Requiring a written prescription regardless of whether the client is having it filled by their veterinarian is burdensome and unnecessary. Clients already have flexibility in filling their pet’s prescription at the veterinary clinic or a pharmacy of their choice.
The Federal Trade Commission is still working on a report that will issue findings and recommendations following a 2012 workshop that addressed competition and consumer protection issues within the pet medications industry. Introducing legislation prior to the release of the report is premature when it has not been determined that there is, in fact, a problem in need of a solution.

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Veterinary Mobility Act one step closer to passage

On April 3, the US House Energy and Commerce Committee approved H.R. 1528 Veterinary Mobility Act which if passed, would allow veterinarians to legally transport, dispense or administer controlled substances in the field. The bill will now move on to the full House. AVMA reports their hope that the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee will come to an agreement so that when the House passes HR 1528, the bill can go to the President. The Senate passed its own version of the bill back in January. 

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US Supreme Court to review power of state licensing boards

The U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will consider the extent to which state licensure boards are subject to federal antitrust laws. In the case, North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners v. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that decisions of the North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners related to unauthorized and unlawful practice are subject to federal antitrust law.  The dental board had sent cease-and-desist letters to non-dentist teeth-whitening providers, finding that they engaged in unauthorized practice of dentistry. The FTC issued an administrative complaint against the dental board, charging it with violating federal antitrust law by excluding non-dentist teeth whiteners from the market.
If affirmed, the appeals court’s decision could potentially strip various state licensing boards of their authority to regulate and protect the public from unlawful practice. In a petition filed in November 2013, the AVMA joined the American Dental Association, American Medical Association and several other organizations in urging the Supreme Court to consider the case on the grounds that the public is best served when state regulatory boards are free to make decisions on public health issues without fear of second-guessing under federal antitrust laws. By Adrian Hochstadt, JD, AVMA State Legislative and Regulatory Affairs

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Former pharmacist's plea outlines Kentwood Pharmacy's scheme to resell returned drugs

By John Agar | jagar@mlive.com 
Follow on Twitter 
on April 29, 2014 at 3:10 PM, updated April 29, 2014 at 3:29 PM
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – The former chief pharmacist of Kentwood Pharmacy has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit health fraud for illegally repackaging unused prescription drugs that had been returned from nursing homes and adult foster homes.

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Orange Co. pharmacist accused of filling fake prescriptions...

Orange Co. pharmacist accused of filling fake prescriptions...

Pharmacy owner and manager convicted on drug charges

STAFF REPORT

Published: Friday, May 2, 2014 at 12:15 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, May 2, 2014 at 12:15 p.m.

The owner and manager of an Englewood pharmacy have been convicted of the illegal distribution of prescription drugs and money laundering.

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05/02/2014 2:44PM Derby, Oaks drug tests come up clean By Matt Hegarty

All 75 blood samples pulled from horses entered on the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby cards at Churchill Downs on Friday and Saturday tested negative for blood-doping drugs and illegal peptides, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission announced on Friday morning.

The tests were performed on blood samples from every horse entered in the Derby and the Oaks, according to Dr. Mary Scollay, the KHRC’s equine medical director. The KHRC also pulled blood samples from “a random cross-section” of approximately four horses in each of the stakes races on the Friday and Saturday undercard, Scollay said on Friday.

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Federal obligation to clean up horse racing | TheHill

Federal obligation to clean up horse racing | TheHill

Secret To Success: a Derby Win and Racing’s Doping Addiction

Fifty years after the 1964 Kentucky Derby, revisiting the race and its implications for drugs in the Sport of Kings.

by Ryan Goldberg, Special to ProPublica May 2, 2014, 11:02 a.m.

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Texas Board of Pharmacy Takes Action Against Pharmacies and Pharmacists where evidence indicated a continuing threat to the public welfare

Temporary Suspension Hearings

On April 29, 2014, the Applications for Temporary Suspension of the pharmacy license of Pill Box, Pharmacy License#2472, of Dumas, Texas, the pharmacist license of S. Ray Johnson, Pharmacist License #16082, of Dumas, Texas, and the pharmacist license of Carol M. Johnson, Pharmacist License #16435were granted in that the evidence and information indicated that Pill Box, Mr. Johnson, and Ms. Johnson are a continuing threat to the public welfare based on the following: Mr. and Ms. Johnson are the owners and only pharmacist employees of the pharmacy. Mr. Johnson continued to perform pharmacist duties with a suspended license at the pharmacy. Mr.  and Ms. Johnson’s actions demonstrate a lack of regard for the Texas pharmacy law and Texas Pharmacy Board Rules.   The Board Disciplinary Panel adopted the proposed Temporary Suspension Orders and suspended Respondents’ pharmacist licenses and pharmacy license accordingly. On April 29, 2014, the Applications for Temporary Suspension of the pharmacy license of A& I Pharmacy, LLC, wasgranted in that the evidence and information indicated that A & I Pharmacy is a continuing threat to the public welfare based on the following: The pharmacy has ceased to engage in the business described in the application for a pharmacy license for 30 days or longer. Because the pharmacy is not engaging in the sole purpose for which the license was issued, allowing the pharmacy to continue to hold a license to operate constitutes a continuing threat to the public welfare.  The Board Disciplinary Panel adopted the proposed Temporary Suspension Order and suspended Respondents’ pharmacist license accordingly.   quoted from the May e-newsletter of Texas Board of Pharmacy

Texas Board of Pharmacy Provides Notice Regarding Adopted and Proposed Rules for 2014

Adopted and Proposed Rules

Rules adopted at the February 2014 Board meeting were published as adopted in the March 21, 2014, issue of the Texas Register and became effective March 26, 2014.  Rules proposed at the February Board meeting are posted in the March 21, 2014, issues of the Texas Register.  The proposed rules will be considered for adoption at the next TSBP board meeting on May 6, 2014.  You may view a summary of the adopted and proposed rules here.  Please note underlined language is new language and language that is being deleted is lined out.  All other language is currently in the rules and is not being changed. Adopted and Proposed Rules Rules adopted at the February 2014 Board meeting were published as adopted in the March 21, 2014, issue of the Texas Register and became effective March 26, 2014.  Rules proposed at the February Board meeting are posted in the March 21, 2014, issues of the Texas Register.  The proposed rules will be considered for adoption at the next TSBP board meeting on May 6, 2014.  You may view a summary of the adopted and proposed rules here.  Please note underlined language is new language and language that is being deleted is lined out.  All other language is currently in the rules and is not being changed. quoted from May e-newsletter of Texas Board of Pharmacy

Texas Board of Pharmacy Provides Notice Regarding New Rules Regarding ratio for pharmacists to pharmayc technicians

Pharmacy Ratio Requirements

At their February 2014, the Board voted to amend the ratio requirements for Class A, Class B, and Class G pharmacies. The ratio for pharmacists to pharmacy technicians in Class A and Class B pharmacies was increased to 1:4 and the ratio in Class G pharmacies was increased to 1:8. The rules became effective March 26, 2014. quoted from May e-newsletter of Texas Board of Pharmacy

USP Faces New Challenges Published by Jill Wechsler, Washington editor on May 2, 2014 10:22 am under Regulation

USP Faces New Challenges

Published by Jill Wechsler, Washington editor on May 2, 2014 10:22 am under Regulation

In anticipation of the 200th anniversary of the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) in 2020, the organization’s new leadership is taking a fresh look at its role in setting standards for pharmaceutical development and production and how that has been altered by new regulatory policies and industry globalization. USP chief executive officer Ron Piervincenzi is consulting with stakeholders, reviewing the organization’s operations, and examining options for growth and change as part of the agenda for the next USP convention in April 2015.

Piervincenzi comes to USP with training in bioengineering and expertise in management gained at McKinsey & Co., where he worked on multiple projects involving regulatory and medical affairs for many parties involved in USP activities, including manufacturers of drugs, dietary supplements, veterinary medicine, and foods. As the biomedical world has become more complex, notes USP president Timothy Franson, USP needs leadership with deep scientific understanding, as well as strong management skills and broad experience in stakeholder areas.

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Five disturbing pieces on Oklahoma's bungled execution (news, analysis, timelines)

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Executing state secrets Texas needs to be as transparent as possible about the state's method of killing prisoners.

read Houston Chronicle here

Texas plans three executions as courts mull secrecy of lethal drugs • Next execution scheduled to use drugs of secret origin • Legal battle over prison officials' secrecy nears decision

As Oklahoma continues to feel the aftershocks from its botched execution attempt on Tuesday, attention is turning to Texas, where a key secrecy ruling is expected to be made later this month.

The next US execution is scheduled for 13 May in the nation’s most-active death penalty state, where Robert Campbell is set to be given a lethal injection for the abduction and murder of Alexandra Rendon, a bank employee, in Houston in 1991.

The 41-year-old will be put to death using the sedative pentobarbital, but the source of the drug remains unknown amid a series of legal skirmishes, as in Oklahoma, over whether the state is allowed to withhold fundamental details about the deadly chemicals in its possession.

Texas has been at the heart of the execution secrecy debate in recent weeks as it has continued to execute prisoners after refusing to complywith freedom of information requests seeking to reveal the quantity and origins of its latest set of drugs.

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Michigan: Hune-Sponsored Pharmacy Regulation Bills Pass Committee

May 2, 2014

5/2/14 - The Michigan Senate Health Policy Committee unanimously approved two bills sponsored by a local lawmaker to increase regulations on compounding pharmacies this week. Senate Bills 704 and 904 were sponsored by Senator Joe Hune of Hamburg following an outbreak of fungal meningitis in 2012 that resulted from tainted steroids from a compounding center in Massachusetts. More recently, Specialty Medicine Compounding Pharmacy in South Lyon was shut down after it was discovered that it had distributed tainted injections and was allegedly acting as a drug manufacturer rather than a pharmacy. The bills sponsored by Hune call for compounding pharmacies to have more internal oversight and record-keeping, perform criminal background checks for pharmacy owners, and submit to regular inspections by the state. They will now go before the full Michigan Senate for consideration. (TD)

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CVS earnings lifted by specialty pharmacy business

By Ben Fox

CVS Caremark Corp. said its first-quarter profit jumped 18% as its growing specialty pharmacy business helped boost revenue.

The pharmacy chain said this year that it would stop selling all cigarettes and tobacco products nationwide by October, saying they have no place in a drugstore company that is trying to become more of a health-care provider.

The move reflects a big push by retail pharmacies away from simply dispensing drugs toward a broader role of providing basic health services to Americans, including millions of newly insured, amid an expected shortage of primary care doctors.

CVS Caremark reported a profit of $1.13 billion, or 95 cents a share, up from $954 million, or 77 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding special items, per-share earnings rose to $1.02 from 83 cents. The company expected adjusted earnings of $1.03 to $1.06 a share.

Revenue grew 6.3% to $32.69 billion, compared with estimates of $32.31 billion from analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Revenue in its pharmacy services business grew 10% to $20.2 billion. The increase was primarily driven by growth in the company's specialty pharmacy business, including its acquisition of Coram, as well as drug cost inflation, new clients and new products. CVS in January completed its purchase of Coram, a provider of infusion therapies, for $2.1 billion.

On the retail side of the pharmacy business, revenue rose 2.7% to $16.5 billion. CVS said the pharmacy services and retail pharmacy segments both benefited from the impact of increased generic drugs dispensed and slower growth in expenses.

The drugstore-operator and pharmacy-benefits manager in December said its was forming a joint venture with Cardinal Health Inc. to source generic drugs, a key issue for the industry as consumers increasingly are using the less-expensive medicines.

For the current quarter, the company predicted $1.08 to $1.11 a share in adjusted earnings, compared with $1.09 a share expected from analysts. The company also backed its full-year guidance.

Write to Ben Fox Rubin at ben.rubin@wsj.com

Access Investor Kit for CVS Caremark Corp.

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Rx Mixer 2014 Donors - International Academy of Co...

The Law of Veterinary Medicine: Rx Mixer 2014 Donors - International Academy of Co...: Rx Mixer 2014 Donors - International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists

'The Rachel Maddow Show' for Wednesday, April 30, 2014

'The Rachel Maddow Show' for Wednesday, April 30, 2014

High Importance: Colorado State Board of Veterinary Medicine, State Board of Pharmacy and DEA collaborate on document providing guidance to veterinarians on administering, distrubuting, dispensing and prescribing prescription drugs

The Importance of Understanding What is Required of You When Administering, Distributing, Dispensing, or Prescribing Prescription Drugs

The State Board of Veterinary Medicine (Board) has reviewed several cases and fielded multiple questions surrounding the subject of prescriptions—ranging from acts requiring registration as a wholesaler with the State Board of Pharmacy to the responsibilities of a licensed veterinarian when prescribing medication for a patient. After engaging in numerous discussions in the area of prescription drugs being administered, distributed, dispensed, or prescribed by licensed veterinarians, it is clear to the Board that there is potentially widespread misunderstanding and miscommunication of the legal requirements governing licensees when engaged in such acts.

Provided by DORA, this document, which was written in collaboration with the State Board of Pharmacy as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration, covers prescription requirements for licensed veterinarians in the state of Colorado in great detail and attempts to provide guidance and clarity in better understanding your roles and responsibilities. The document is posted here (click link above) in its entirety and also on the main page of the State Board of Veterinary Medicine website atwww.dora.state.co.us/veterinarians/. Please take the time to download the complete piece.  It is imperative that each licensee understand the current requirements, keep informed and abreast of upcoming changes, and whenever possible participate in the process for further clarifying requirements into Board Rules and Policies.

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Issues: Prescription Drug Monitoring Program - Colorado Veterinary Medical Association

Issues: Prescription Drug Monitoring Program - Colorado Veterinary Medical Association

News & Events Public Workshop: Standards for the Interoperable Exchange of Information for Tracing of Human, Finished, Prescription Drugs, in Paper or Electronic Format

News & Events Public Workshop: Standards for the Interoperable Exchange of Information for Tracing of Human, Finished, Prescription Drugs, in Paper or Electronic Format

FDA Enforcement Report - Week of April 30, 2014

Enforcement Report - Week of April 30, 2014

Recall from Brookfield Prescription Center Inc. One lot of Clycopyrrolate solution for injection was contaiminated with Bacillus thuringiensis.

more information found here

CMS Rebuffs OIG's Call To Add Pharmacy Names To Compounded Drug Claims

(Daily News - 04-30-2014)

CMS rebuffed the HHS Office of Inspector General's suggestion that Medicare Part B claims for compounded drugs identify the firm producing the product, telling the OIG that CMS can stop payments for drugs not produced under FDA requirements but lacks methods to track or identify compounded drug claims.

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OIG recommends CMS track Part B claims for compounded drugs (AHA - American Hospital Association)

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services should establish a method to identify Medicare Part B claims for compounded drugs, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General said in report this week. OIG surveyed CMS staff and Part B Medicare Administrative Contractors to assess their oversight of Medicare claims for compounded drugs, citing public health and safety concerns following a 2012 outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to contaminated injectable compounded drugs. CMS concurred with OIG recommendations that the agency establish a...more »

Three-Drug Protocol Persists for Lethal Injections, Despite Ease of Using One

By DENISE GRADYMAY 1, 2014

Terminally ill people who want to die can take drugs to end their lives peacefully. Ailing pets are put down humanely every day. Clearly, the technology exists to bring about a quick and painless death.

Why, then, do executions by lethal injection sometimes become troubling spectacles? The death in Oklahoma on Tuesday of Clayton D. Lockett, amid struggling and apparent pain, was not the country’s first bungled execution.

A number of factors have conspired to produce painful scenes in the death chamber, experts say: an ill-conceived drug formulation clung to by many states; the lack of medical expertise among people planning and carrying out executions; and, more recently, drug shortages that have pushed prison officials to improvise lethal cocktails and buy drugs from loosely regulated compounding pharmacies

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VERY INTERESTING READ--DETAILS DRUGS USED: HORSE RACING IN AMERICA: A SPECTACLE OF LIARS, DOPERS AND CHEATERS – PART 2 MAY 1, 2014 JANE ALLIN

The Cheaters

STEVE ASMUSSEN

Where better to start than the new poster boy of the Thoroughbred racing world – the unscrupulous Hall-of-Famer Steve Asmussen – Public Enemy number one according to Andrew Beyer.

“He has shamed thoroughbred racing so badly that the chairman of the Jockey Club, Ogden Mills “Dinny” Phipps, declared that there is “a dark cloud hovering over our sport” and that Asmussen ought to stay away from the Kentucky Derby and the Kentucky Oaks.” [1]

While the indiscriminate use of therapeutics and performance-enhancing drugs in the horse racing industry is not really news, the undercover recordings made by a PETA investigator at Asmussen’s barn are. For decades these activities have taken place, clandestinely if you will, hidden from public scrutiny by the code of silence.

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Dairies could learn from horse trainers - Idaho Press-Tribune: Members

Dairies could learn from horse trainers - Idaho Press-Tribune: Members

Op-ed: Drugged and dying in horse racing

Op-ed: Drugged and dying in horse racing

A Modern Approach to Compounded Medications--

Pharmacy Journal of New England, Winter 2013 - publishing

issuu.com/pjne/docs/pjne-winter2013‎

21, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Juxtapid (lomitapide) to reduce ... “FDA is prepared to take aggressive enforcement action to protect ...... 

here

Warning Letters Americare Compounding, LLC. 4/22/14

Warning Letters Americare Compounding, LLC. 4/22/14

Indiana Passes National Uniform Medication And Penalty Reforms May 01, 2014 -

Indiana on Wednesday became the latest state to adopt all of the national uniform medication rules, penalties and testing reforms developed by the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) and adopted as model rules by the Association of Racing Commissioners International (RCI).  Home to Indiana Grand Racing and Casino (which conducts Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing) and Hoosier Park (Standardbreds), Indiana is set to implement the new rules on May 15.

The medication schedule and penalties—formally known as the Controlled Therapeutic Medication Schedule and the Model Medication Violations Penalties System, respectively—were unanimously approved at Wednesday’s regular monthly meeting of the Indiana Horse Racing Commission.  Indiana’s regulations currently meet or exceed the RCI model rule requiring third-party administration of furosemide (commonly known as Lasix) - a key aspect of the reforms - through their longstanding Integrity Program instituted in 2006. Also, Indiana recently entered into an equine drug testing agreement with RMTC-accredited LGC Sports Science Laboratory in Lexington, Ky.

Also on Wednesday, three additional equine drug testing laboratories received full accreditation by the RMTC. The labs receiving accreditation were Truesdail in Tustin, Calif., Industrial Laboratories in Wheat Ridge, Colo., and the Ohio Department of Agriculture laboratory in Columbus, Ohio. RMTC accreditation is based on protocols established by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), considered the gold standard in human drug testing. 

RMTC-accredited laboratories are now responsible for the testing of samples for 23 of the 34 racing jurisdictions in the United States, including Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., Del., Idaho, Ind., Ky., Maine, Mass., Md., Minn., N.D., Neb., N.J., N.M., Nev., Ohio, Okla., Ore., Va., Wash. and Wy.  The University of California, Davis Kenneth L. Maddy Equine Analytical Chemistry Laboratory and the LGC Sports Science Laboratory were accredited in 2013.

“We applaud the state of Indiana and the Indiana Horse Racing Commission for joining the growing number of states that have adopted these important reforms in their entirety,” said NTRA President and CEO Alex Waldrop, who also chairs the RMTC. “Along with the recent RMTC accreditation of three national testing laboratories, this represents another important step toward our goal of national adoption and implementation of uniform rules, penalties and testing standards.”

The entire set of National Uniform Medication Reforms are accessible online at /feeds/testingrules.html and a current list of nearly 60 major industry organizations that have urged their adoption can be viewed at http://ntra.com/lg/IndustrySupporters.html.

- See more at: http://www.ntra.com/en/news-media/press-releases/2014/5/1/indiana-passes-national-uniform-medication-and-penalty-reforms/#sthash.DAMqtqNF.dpuf

Action on Federal Bills Appears Longshot

 

• By Tom LaMarra,

The odds for Congress passing legislation related to equine medication and Internet gambling this year are long, a Washington, D.C.-based official said May 1 during the University of Kentucky Equine Law Conference in Lexington.
American Horse Council president Jay Hickey, who has been based in the nation's capital since 1993, said a lack of consensus in various industries makes passage of legislation difficult.
The Interstate Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, which calls for the United States Anti-Doping Agency to regulate equine medication use and gives the agency power under the Interstate Horseracing Act, which governs interstate simulcasts, has had one hearing, Hickey said.
"Most of the (racing) industry supports uniform model reforms," Hickey said in reference to the National Uniform Medication Program. "It's a very complicated issue, and feelings are running high. We'll see if Congress and others will step in.


Read more on BloodHorse.com: http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/84780/action-on-federal-bills-appears-longshot#ixzz30V7hQWAb

State Senator Michael Rush Visits Sullivan's Pharmacy

Sullivan’s Pharmacy and Medical Supply owner Greg Laham recently welcomed state Sen. Michael F. Rush (D-West Roxbury) to tour the pharmacy and discuss pending legislation related to compounded prescriptions and pharmacy audits.
During the April 11 visit, Laham described the tremendous growth of the neighborhood pharmacy, which now provides a comprehensive compounding center, prescription services for assisted-living facilities and hospice care, in addition to traditional prescriptions for the community.
“We were honored to host Senator Rush at the pharmacy,” Laham said. “He was very interested in learning more about how we compound medications to meet our patient’s individual needs. He also listened to our concerns about how audits by third-party pharmacy benefit managers are impacting independent pharmacies.”

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Compounding Registered Outsourcing Facilities updated 4/25/2014

Compounding Registered Outsourcing Facilities

The latest Health Policy Brief from Health Affairs and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation examines the Compounding Quality Act, a law signed by President Obama in November 2013, which seeks to fill the gaps in the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) inspection and enforcement oversight of compounding pharmacies.
This law was enacted in the wake of a 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak, linked to a Massachusetts drug compounding company. The outbreak caused more than 700 people to become ill and left sixty-four dead. Before the new law was passed, compounding pharmacies were primarily regulated by states, not the FDA.
more information found here

Hospira makes progress on plant problems, reports improved financials

In the past, Hospira ($HSP) competitors have been able to take advantage of the drugmaker's absence from a market because of its plant problems, filling the void and their pockets as well, at Hospira's expense. More recently it has been Hospira's chance to live large off of the quality issues of others. The company's improved Q1 earnings were, in part, due to "off contract" prices.
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Florida Board of Pharmacy Board Conference Call Meeting Today, May 1, 2014 to discuss rule 1. Rule 64B16-27.700

May 1, 2014 Board Conference Call
Meeting Location:Telephone Conference Call

Meet Me #:
(888) 670-3525

Participation Code:
513-489-6685
4042 Bald Cypress Way
Tallahassee, FL 32399

Meeting Materials
FAR Notice (PDF) | Agenda (PDF)

 

Must Read: Consent Agreement Arizonia Board of Pharmacy and CBS Chem, Ltd. transactions involving Diamondback, Speciality Pharmacy Cedar Park, Texas, etc.

W001940

CBS Chem, Ltd.

14-0005 CONSENT AGREEMENT

NABP has issued a report stressing that illegal online drug sellers are the most frequent conduits of counterfeit drugs and pose a continued threat to global public health.

As detailed in the Internet Drug Outlet Identification Program Progress Report for State and Federal Regulators: April 2014 (PDF), most of these rogue Internet drug outlets sell prescription drug products directly to consumers without requiring a valid prescription.

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The Washington Post For more states, execution means improvisation as drug supplies dwindle

By Brady Dennis and Lena H. Sun, E-mail the writers

Oklahoma’s bungled execution of convicted murderer Clayton Lockett on Tuesday was, in some ways, a medical experiment gone wrong.
In recent years, as pharmaceutical companies have halted sales of drugs used in executions, as legal challenges have mounted and medical groups have vowed to ostracize doctors who participate in sanctioned killings, states have found themselves winging it when it comes to carrying out lethal injections.
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Texas 'Has No Plans' to Use Drug From Botched Oklahoma Execution

By Nathan Bernier

Update: After Tuesday night's botched execution in Oklahoma, Texas corrections officials say they have no plans to use midazolam in future executions. Midazolam was the first component of a three-drug cocktail administered to death row inmate Clayton Lockett yesterday. Read more about the execution here.
As KUT first reported in February, the state has supplies of midazolam on hand. But the Texas Department of Criminal Justice says in a statement that it "has no plans to change our procedures. Texas does not use the same drugs as Oklahoma as we use a single lethal dose of pentobarbital and we have done so since 2012.”

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Botched Execution Could Renew 'Cruel' Challenges

by The Associated Press

May 01, 2014 6:03 AM ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The botched execution of an Oklahoma inmate is certain to fire up the debate over what constitutes cruel and unusual punishment — the phrase written into the U.S. Constitution and defined by the courts, piece by piece, over two centuries.
Convicted killer Clayton Lockett, 38, began writhing, clenching his teeth and straining to lift his head off the pillow Tuesday evening after he was supposedly rendered unconscious by the first of three drugs in the state's new lethal injection combination.
The execution was halted, and Lockett died of a heart attack about a half-hour later, authorities said.
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IACP Compounders on Capitol Hill Event advertises an exclusive opportunity to "hob-nob" with the powerful movers and shakers of Washington D.C.; The COMP PAC fundraising dinner is hosting U.S. House of Representative Morgan Griffith

On Monday, May 19, the COMP PAC Dinner and Fundraiser is an exclusive opportunity to hob-nob with the powerful movers and shakers of Washington, D.C. The COMP PAC will host the Honorable Morgan Griffith, U.S. House of Representatives (R, VA-09) as the keynote speaker for the COMP PAC Fundraising Dinner.

 

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Compounders on Capitol Hill - International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists May 17-20, 2014 Registration Information

Compounders on Capitol Hill - International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists

NABP Comments on FDA-State Inter-Governement Meeting on the Federal Compounding Law

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