Content about Alabama

April 16, 2013

Red Diamond releases single-serve coffee and tea

Red Diamond announced it will be offering coffee and tea in single-serve format for home or on the go.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Red Diamond on Monday announced it will be offering coffee and tea in single-serve format for home or on the go leveraging LBP Manufacturing's UpShot Solution.

April 5, 2013

Novo Nordisk launches Race with Insulin contest with Charlie Kimball as spokesman

Novo Nordisk has launched a diabetes awareness sweepstakes in which the winners get a free trip to the 2013 IndyCar finale, the Danish drug maker said.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Novo Nordisk has launched a diabetes awareness sweepstakes in which the winners get a free trip to the 2013 IndyCar finale, the Danish drug maker said Friday.

The company announced that it had hired IZOD IndyCar Series Charlie Kimball as spokesman for its Race with Insulin contest. Kimball, the first licensed driver with diabetes to race at the highest level of the series, was diagnosed with the disease during a routine doctor visit in 2007 while racing in Europe and is a user of Novo Nordisk's NovoLog (insulin aspart [rDNA origin]).

February 28, 2013

Court OKs suit vs. branded firms over side effects of generic drugs

Alabama's Supreme Court ruled in January that brand-name drug companies could be sued if patients suffer complications from generic versions of their medicines, according to published reports.

Alabama's Supreme Court ruled in January that brand-name drug companies could be sued if patients suffer complications from generic versions of their medicines, according to published reports. According to the New York Times, an Alabama man named Danny Weeks claimed he developed tardive dyskinesia after taking generic versions of Pfizer's acid reflux drug Reglan (metoclopramide). Pfizer acquired rights to the drug when it bought Wyeth in 2009, and generic drug makers Teva and Actavis, now owned by Watson, make generic versions.

February 28, 2013

Rite Aid Foundation awards $15,000 for Ala. vision-screening program

Rite Aid's philanthropic arm has donated $15,000 to an organization that works with universities to develop social-justice projects.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid's philanthropic arm has donated $15,000 to an organization that works with universities to develop social justice projects.

The Rite Aid Foundation announced the donation of the grant to Impact Alabama, based in Birmingham, Ala., which plans to use the grant to expand FocusFirst, a vision-screening program for children in Head Start classrooms and lower-income daycares across the state. The foundation previously awarded the group $15,000 in 2010.

February 1, 2013

Patients taking obesity drug experience improvement in cardiovascular risk factors, study finds

Patients who take a drug for losing weight may experience improvement in multiple cardiovascular disease risk factors, according to a new study.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Patients who take a drug for losing weight may experience improvement in multiple cardiovascular disease risk factors, according to a new study.

January 31, 2013

Partnership aims to curb cardiovascular disease among African-Americans in Alabama

A new health initiative will address cardiovascular disease among African-Americans living in three counties in Alabama where the problem is considered significant.

WASHINGTON — A new health initiative will address cardiovascular disease among African-Americans living in three counties in Alabama where the problem is considered significant.

January 15, 2013

Reports: Alabama man can sue branded drug makers over generic drug side effects

The state supreme court in Alabama ruled that brand-name drug companies could be sued if patients suffer complications from generic versions of their medicines, according to published reports.

NEW YORK — The state supreme court in Alabama ruled that brand-name drug companies could be sued if patients suffer complications from generic versions of their medicines, according to published reports.

According to The New York Times, an Alabama man named Danny Weeks claimed he developed tardive dyskinesia after taking generic versions of Pfizer's acid reflux drug Reglan (metoclopramide). Pfizer acquired rights to the drug when it bought Wyeth in 2009, and generic drug makers Teva and Actavis, now owned by Watson, make generic versions.

December 27, 2012

Christmas tornado narrowly misses Alabama Walgreens location

A video depicting a tornado blowing through the parking lot of a Walgreens was posted to YouTube on Wednesday.

MOBILE, Ala. — A video depicting a tornado blowing through the parking lot of a Walgreens was posted to YouTube on Wednesday. The footage captures both shoppers and store employees reacting to the tornado with footage from both outside and inside the store.

December 4, 2012

CDC: Influenza season officially underway

The influenza season is officially underway as flu incidence is already above the national threshold, Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters during a teleconference Monday.

ATLANTA — The influenza season is officially underway as flu incidence is already above the national threshold, Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters during a teleconference Monday. "This is the earliest regular flu season we've had in nearly a decade, since the 2003-2004 flu season," he said. "That was an early and severe flu year, and while flu is always unpredictable, the early nature of the cases as well as the specific strains we're seeing suggest that this could be a bad flu year."

October 25, 2012

Study: Aspirin may block tumor growth in certain patients with colorectal cancer

Aspirin has the potential to block tumor growth in certain patients with colorectal cancer, according to an editorial in the Oct. 25, 2012 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by a University of Alabama at Birmingham oncologist.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Aspirin has the potential to block tumor growth in certain patients with colorectal cancer, according to an editorial in the Oct. 25, 2012 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by a University of Alabama at Birmingham oncologist. In a study that appears in the same issue, researchers examined the use of aspirin in the treatment outcomes of patients with colorectal cancer.

October 24, 2012

Ala. pharmacist appointed NCPA president for 2012-13

The National Community Pharmacists Association has a new crop of leaders for 2012-13, the group said Wednesday.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Community Pharmacists Association has a new crop of leaders for 2012-13, the group said Wednesday.

The new officers and board of directors, announced at the NCPA's 114th Annual Convention and Trade Exposition, are the group's governing body.

October 8, 2012

Samford University pharmacy school gets CMS nursing home grant

A pharmacy school in Alabama is getting a grant for a program designed to reduce hospitalizations among nursing home residents.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A pharmacy school in Alabama is getting a grant for a program designed to reduce hospitalizations among nursing home residents.

September 6, 2012

Walgreens gives more than $100,000 of in-kind donations to areas hit by Hurricane Isaac

In the week after Hurricane Isaac made landfall along the Gulf Coast, Walgreens responded with donations of more than $100,000 worth of products to the American Red Cross for relief efforts in the hardest-hit states, the pharmacy retailer announced Wednesday.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — In the week after Hurricane Isaac made landfall along the Gulf Coast, Walgreens responded with donations of more than $100,000 worth of products to the American Red Cross for relief efforts in the hardest-hit states, the pharmacy retailer announced Wednesday. The company delivered three truckloads of food items to Red Cross facilities in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama for distribution to first responders and those in need.

July 26, 2012

Qualitest gets FDA OK for generic Keppra XR

Qualitest Pharmaceuticals announced that it has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for its generic version of an epilepsy treatment.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Qualitest Pharmaceuticals announced that it has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for its generic version of an epilepsy treatment.

The drug maker said its abbreviated new drug application for levetiracetam extended-release tablets, in the 500-mg and 750-mg strength, was approved. The drug is a generic version of UCB's Keppra XR.

Total combined sales for levetiracetam extended-release tablets were approximately $124.8 million for the 12 months ended in May, according to IMS Health data.

June 21, 2012

Legislative News — Chain Pharmacy, 6/25/12

Legislation proposed in the House of Representatives would speed up Food and Drug Administration approval of knock-off versions of vaccines and other biologics while requiring the agency to conduct more inspections of drug factories overseas, according to published reports.

WASHINGTON — Legislation proposed in the House of Representatives would speed up Food and Drug Administration approval of knock-off versions of vaccines and other biologics while requiring the agency to conduct more inspections of drug factories overseas, according to published reports.

June 7, 2012

AAP sponsors prescription drug abuse education event

Government authorities are working to educate independent pharmacy owners on prescription drug abuse, an independent pharmacy network said.

SCOTTSBORO, Ala. — Government authorities are working to educate independent pharmacy owners on prescription drug abuse, an independent pharmacy network said.

In an event sponsored by American Associated Pharmacies in San Diego, Drug Enforcement Administration deputy assistant administrator for the Office of Diversion Control Joseph Rannazzisi discussed topics related to prescription drug abuse. Rannazzisi explained how drug abusers divert prescription drugs through doctor shopping, forged prescriptions, theft and the Internet.

May 11, 2012

NACDS applauds enactment of Alabama PBM audit legislation

A law that will establish standards in the pharmacy audit process conducted by pharmacy benefit managers in the state of Alabama has received the applause of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A law that will establish standards in the pharmacy audit process conducted by pharmacy benefit managers in the state of Alabama has received the applause of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.

April 2, 2012

NACDS expands state team with hiring of advocacy expert Leigh Knotts

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores on Monday announced that state health policy professional Leigh Knotts will serve as director of state government affairs, responsible for advocacy in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina and Tennessee.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores on Monday announced that state health policy professional Leigh Knotts will serve as director of state government affairs, responsible for advocacy in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Knotts will join NACDS’ state team, for a total of six state directors, all of whom report to Sandra Guckian, NACDS VP state government affairs.

March 8, 2012

MTM fights diabetes on the front lines

The number of patients with diabetes is not decreasing any time soon, and one of the most important fronts in the battle lies at the pharmacy counter. 

March 2, 2012

CDC's latest weekly flu report: Still no season to speak of to date

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday issued its latest update on the influenza season to date, or rather the lack thereof. For the week ended Feb. 25, visits for influenza-like illnesses have yet to crack the national baseline of 2.4% this season.

ATLANTA — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday issued its latest update on the influenza season to date, or rather the lack thereof. For the week ended Feb. 25, visits for influenza-like illnesses have yet to crack the national baseline of 2.4% this season.

Over the past two seasons, 2009/2010 and 2010/2011, reports of ILI activity reached levels approaching 8% and 5%, respectively, after crossing over that 2.4% threshold — an indicator that the flu season is well under way.

February 22, 2012

American Associated Pharmacies partners with RxAlly

American Associated Pharmacies announced that it has partnered with RxAlly, an alliance that includes more than 20,000 pharmacies nationwide that seeks to improve health and reduce costs for pharmacy patients.

SCOTTSBORO, Ala. — American Associated Pharmacies announced that it has partnered with RxAlly, an alliance that includes more than 20,000 pharmacies nationwide that seeks to improve health and reduce costs for pharmacy patients.

"We are actively investing our time, resources and talents in the development of RxAlly," AAP CEO Jon Copeland said. "This is a collaborative effort to better serve our members’ patients and improve the delivery of health care, the likes of which the United States has not seen to date."

February 13, 2012

CDC: Widespread flu activity reported in California

The flu season is in full swing as California reported widespread influenza activity, according to data reported by state and territorial epidemiologists and published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

ATLANTA — The flu season is in full swing as California reported widespread influenza activity, according to data reported by state and territorial epidemiologists and published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

February 7, 2012

Reps. seek sponsors for MTM bill

Two members of Congress are looking for co-sponsors for a bill that would strengthen the medication therapy management benefit in the Medicare prescription drug program.

NEW YORK — Two members of Congress are looking for co-sponsors for a bill that would strengthen the medication therapy management benefit in the Medicare prescription drug program.

Last year, Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ala.; and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., introduced H.R. 891, the Medication Therapy Management Benefits Act, which would allow elderly people with at least one chronic condition access to Medicare Part D coverage for MTM. Currently, only those with multiple conditions are eligible.

February 1, 2012

Flu season in swing: Vaccine good protection

Through the first week of the New Year, incidence of flu was on a slight incline but still relatively low. Only two states, Alabama and Louisiana, reported a measured rise in influenza-like illnesses.

For many seasons, the spread of influenza begins to accelerate in the latter half of January to peak sometime in February/March.

January 31, 2012

J&J recalls one lot of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort lotion

Johnson & Johnson Consumer Cos. last week voluntarily recalled from retailers one lot of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort lotion that was distributed in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Johnson & Johnson Consumer Cos. last week voluntarily recalled from retailers one lot of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort lotion that was distributed in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.

This is not a consumer level recall and no action is required by consumers, the company stated.