Content about Health

NEW YORK — The spate of recent product recalls may be eroding consumer confidence in the Food and Drug Administration, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of 1,000 Americans released Tuesday.

Approximately one-half of respondents reported they think the FDA does a good job, but more than one-third (36%) of U.S. consumers said they have lost confidence in the FDA over the past two years as a result of high profile safety concerns and product recalls.

NEW YORK — Recent public perception that the Food and Drug Administration had not been doing its job — ensuring that Americans' approved medical devices and medicines are relatively safe — may be impeding fast approval processes, according to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers report published Tuesday.

The report, “Improving America’s Health V,” determined that the FDA’s renewed vigor for enforcing regulations may be straining the working relationship between regulator and the industry being regulated.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens is making a high-impact health statement to mark World AIDS Day that will be hard to ignore.

WASHINGTON — Moving a step closer to filling a leadership void, the American Pharmacists Association Foundation said Monday it has tapped The Bernard Consulting Group, an executive search firm, to assist with the search for the next executive director and CEO of the organization.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens' chief medical officer will discuss the evidence-based medicine design and impact of a diabetes management program delivered by pharmacists at both workplace and community pharmacies during an upcoming conference, the drug store chain said.

WESTPORT, Conn. — More than half of people with diabetes struggle to pay for their medical supplies, according to a poll by diabetes community network dLife.com.

The poll also found that 49% of the more than 800 people surveyed were able to make ends meet with income and health insurance, but still felt stress, particularly during certain months of the year.

Meanwhile, more than 30% reported having to cut back on prescription drugs, supplies and medical care, while 16% accepted community or government assistance programs.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — More than ever, seniors who rely on Medicare need to carefully evaluate the dizzying array of prescription drug plan choices available to them, as the 2011 enrollment period for Medicare Part D drug benefit program goes into high gear, independent pharmacy leaders declared Tuesday.

NEW YORK — A new study published in the Nov. 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine suggested there is a two-way relationship between depression and diabetes.

MINNETONKA, Minn. — UnitedHealth Group will start a program next year that it said can reduce drug costs to as low as $2 per script, the company said Tuesday.

The program, Pharmacy Saver, will be available to Medicare Part D members and is a collaboration with Kroger, Safeway and Prescription Solutions. The program will allow members to purchase some scripts for $2 for 30- and some 90-day supplies and applies to hundreds of prescription drugs, including 8-of-the-10 most commonly used by UnitedHealthcare Medicare plan members.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. Several organizations representing retailers and consumer healthcare product manufacturers want Congress to reverse a provision in the healthcare-reform act that would prohibit the use of flexible spending accounts to purchase over-the-counter medicines without a prescription.

LAKE MARY, Fla. Specialty pharmacy provider Axium Healthcare Pharmacy has received recognition from the National Hemophilia Foundation for its treatment programs, Axium said.

The NHF said Axium “meets or exceeds” the standards of the organization’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Council, meaning that it has staff knowledgeable about and provides a full range of treatments, has 24-hour access to pharmacy staff and has good record-keeping, billing and product recall processes.