Content about Drugs

WASHINGTON — Finals can be a stressful time for any college or graduate student, with many hours spent studying and few spent socializing or relaxing. But many students are using prescription drugs to get through finals, according to a new study.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — A Walgreens survey released Tuesday found that 37% of Medicare Part D beneficiaries have daily concerns about their prescription drug costs, and 1-in-5 say they’ve had to make sacrifices, such as delaying filling a prescription or skipping doses, to help manage medication costs.

That's almost 11.7 million seniors. 

WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration may soon find itself in another Plan-B-generated quandary — the complications around granting a three-year marketing exclusivity for a medicine that is both prescription-only and over-the-counter, according to an FDA Law Blog posted Sunday by Hyman, Phelps & McNamara. 

Teens looking for something to get them high score drugs from friends, from friends of friends, from networks on campus or at school, or from dealers on the street. But increasingly, they’re also turning to another source: Mom and dad’s medicine cabinet.

CHICAGO — Generic drug maker Hospira marked its fifth year marketing knock-off versions of biotech drugs in Europe Wednesday as it presented at the 2013 Biotechnology Industry Organization International Convention this week.

The drug maker said it delivered more than 5 million doses of biosimilar medicines to patients in Europe and Australia. The convention includes multiple sessions devoted to such topics as biosimilar regulatory approval, manufacturing and market formation, the company said.

WASHINGTON — Generic makers heralded the fiscal year 2014 budget proposed last week by the Obama administration for its embrace of generic drugs, but were critical of its provisions on patent settlements and rebates.

The new world of targeted, specialized medicines — many of them bioengineered and many of them aimed at smaller and smaller segments of the population — isn’t just on its way. It’s here. And it’s going to radically change the practice of pharmacy.

Here’s an eye-opener: Specialty drugs will likely account for 50% of all drug costs by 2018, up from 28.7% of total prescription drug costs in 2012.

ORLANDO, Fla. — According to an independent research firm, a recent pilot program to address awareness of the dangers of prescription drug abuse in teens showed 75% of all respondents were more aware of the dangers of misusing and abusing prescription drugs after participating in the educational program.

A representative and a senator, both Republicans, recently introduced legislation that would repeal restrictions on health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 that prohibit the use of HSA and FSA account dollars for the purchase of over-the-counter drugs without a prescription.

NEW YORK — Medication-information website Drugs.com has launched a mobile app that includes access to personal medication records, drug-interaction lists and breaking health news, the company said Friday.

The Drugs.com Medication Guide is available free of charge for iOS and Android phones and includes tools such as MedNotes, the Symptom Checker and an A-to-Z index of more than 24,000 prescription and OTC drugs, including information about whether drugs are available as generics.

Just about every healthcare practitioner recommends over-the-counter medicines to their patients. And nearly 3-out-of-4 make that OTC recommendation as the first therapy option, according to a recent survey released by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association. 

This is another proof point that OTC medicines play an important role in holding down cost. 

WASHINGTON — Nearly 98% of primary care physicians, nurse practitioners and pharmacists trust and recommend over-the-counter medicines to their patients, according to a new survey released Wednesday by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association. Nearly three-fourths of primary care physicians recommend OTC medicines to relieve symptoms before recommending a prescription treatment.