Content about Patient safety

The interest in healthcare reform has reached a new high, especially in light of the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, yet there's no denying that consumers are still unclear as to the impact on their personal healthcare and insurance issues. That being said, Americans see a need for change as they battle rising costs and a lack of access to care, and many are saying "aye" to healthcare reform, according to the most recent Patient Views infographic.

Costs are the biggest concern for opponents of healthcare reform. They’ve done the math — additional healthcare consumers means care that’s both more expensive and harder to come by. As many as 3-in-4 consumers who are not big fans of healthcare reform share that concern — 30% of those consumers suggested it’s their greatest concern, according to an exclusive survey of nearly 800 patients conducted by AccentHealth and DSN in late July and early August. A reduction in care quality was concern No.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens is underscoring the importance of medication preparedness to its customers that may be impacted by hurricane Isaac, which is on path for the Gulf Coast.

PLYMOUTH, Minn. — Thrifty White Pharmacy — which operates more than 80 locations in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Montana and Wisconsin — has announced the introduction of the Rx Timer Cap, which it is giving away for free to each pharmacy patient who enrolls in the Ready Refill or Medication Synchronization programs. Additional Rx Timer Caps may be purchased at any Thrifty White location.

CARROLLTON, Ga. — Greenway Medical Technologies on Wednesday announced that Walgreens is deploying its electronic health record  solution to more closely integrate the retail pharmacy's healthcare services. The EHR is currently in more than 200 Walgreens stores, with chainwide rollout to its nearly 8,000 locations planned to be completed by the end of summer 2013.

NEWARK, N.J. — A company that develops cloud-based pharmacy automation and communications products has released a way for patients to refill their prescriptions on Facebook.

TeleManager announced the release of iRefill Facebook, the newest component of its iRefill Connect suite of products. Other components include iRefill Mobile, which allows two-way communication between patients and their pharmacists.

ARLINGTON, Va. — Surescripts on Tuesday announced that Minnesota achieved the highest rate of e-prescribing use in the nation during 2011 to capture the No. 1 ranking in its seventh annual Safe-Rx Awards. The rankings are determined by an analysis of data that measures electronic prescribing use by physicians, pharmacies and payers in each state.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores announced on Wednesday that it has submitted a statement to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, detailing chain pharmacy’s engagement in the prevention of prescription drug abuse, and its commitment to maintaining patients’ ready access to medications vital for pain management and for treatment regimens.

NACDS submitted its statement for the Caucus’ hearing on “Responding to the Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic.”

PLYMOUTH, Minn. — Thrifty White Pharmacy is carrying a new prescription drug packaging system that it said would improve adherence.

With the HealthyPackRx, medications are organized into individual packages labeled with the medication, date and time to be taken, with the intention of preventing patients from taking their drugs incorrectly.

NEW YORK — The trend toward “narrow” pharmacy networks is expected to continue, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Walgreens’ split from PBM giant Express Scripts — many of whose millions of plan members now are getting their prescriptions filled elsewhere after the two companies failed to come to terms over reimbursement rates — has opened the door for interest in networks that limit the number of drug stores available to pharmacy-benefit customers, the WSJ reported.

It’s been cited as one of the biggest health crises facing the United States and, if solved, the equivalent dollar value of a blockbuster drug. According to the latest statistics from pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts, poor medication adherence costs the country $317 billion per year, an upgrade from the $290 billion calculated in a study released in 2009 by the New England Healthcare Institute.