Content about Government

WASHINGTON The Council for Responsible Nutrition on Tuesday announced the opening of its international headquarters in Manno, Switzerland. CRN will be opening a new wholly-owned entity to be known as the Council for Responsible Nutrition-International (CRN-I), the dietary supplement industry association announced.

With the defeat of Democrat Martha Coakley by Republican Scott Brown in the race to fill the seat of late Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy, and the loss of the Democrats’ filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, the healthcare-reform bill stands on a knife’s edge. And how will pharmacies be reimbursed for dispensing generic drugs to Medicaid and Medicare patients if a health overhaul bill fails to pass?

NEW YORK What do diabetes supplies for retail pharmacy Medicare patients, the Pittsburgh Steelers' chance of defending their Super Bowl title and Old Father Time 2009 all have in common? They all could be no more not too long after Dick Clark counts down to the New Year for the 38th time.

And of those three, losing diabetes supplies for retail pharmacy Medicare patients will certainly be the most devastating. (Unless you live in Steel Town. And you don’t have diabetes.)

NEW YORK To paraphrase a quote often attributed — but probably incorrectly — to 19th century German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, if you like either laws or sausages, it’s best not to watch them being made.

That maxim could certainly apply to the seemingly endless bickering over the details of the health-reform debate in Congress. But in an era of constant Internet news feeds, blogging and instantaneous, on-the-spot reporting and analysis, it’s virtually impossible to avoid the spectacle.

NEW YORK It’s like “Whack-a-Mole,” that game-arcade exercise in quick reflexes and frustration.

NEW YORK The findings of the Take Care Health Systems’ survey are important as they undoubtedly underscore the importance of worksite clinics, which are growing increasingly common as U.S. employers look for ways to curb skyrocketing healthcare costs and bolster employee health and productivity.

NEW YORK Almost one-third of those community pharmacists who already offered DMEPOS services responded that they would cease delivering Medicare services if Congress doesn’t act soon.

That should be a wake-up call for Congress.