Content about Specialty Pharmacy

SAN DIEGO — Early detection of a deadly brain infection that sometimes arises due to treatment of autoimmune disorders with immune-suppressing biotech drugs may improve survival, according to a new study.

The study, released Sunday and scheduled for presentation at the 65th annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in San Diego, which starts next Saturday, found that early detection of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, may improve survival and disability levels.

ST. LOUIS — While the country's spending on specialty drugs increased by 18.4% in 2012, spending on traditional drugs fell for the first time in 20 years, according to a report by Express Scripts.

WASHINGTON — Employers that use multiple cost-management programs have a 50% lower specialty drug trend than those that don't use them, according to a new study by pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts.

The study, presented Thursday at the National Business Group on Health's Business Health Agenda 2013 conference in Washington, was described as one of the first to examine the effect of multiple utilization management programs on the cost of specialty medications, which is expected to account for $1 out of every $4 spent on prescription drugs by 2014.

WASHINGTON — Several senators have requested that the Government Accountability Office look for ways to coordinate the efforts of law enforcement and public health agencies at various levels and nonprofit organizations to address prescription drug abuse.

PHILADELPHIA — The Food and Drug Administration has accepted a regulatory application for a new painkiller from Iroko Pharmaceuticals, the drug maker said Monday.

Iroko is seeking approval for a lower-dose, submicron diclofenac, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug for treating mild to moderate acute pain in adults.

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A system for connecting doctors with patients via smartphone is being presented at a healthcare information technology conference this month.

GREAT NECK, N.Y. — MinuteClinic, the retail healthcare division of CVS Caremark and North Shore-LIJ Health System (North Shore-LIJ), one of the nation's largest healthcare providers, have signed a clinical collaboration to enhance access to high-quality healthcare services in Nassau and Suffolk counties and the boroughs of Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island.

FLINT, Mich. — A clinical technology manager at Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy has received an award from a state pharmacy association.

Diplomat said Monday that Michael Crowe had received the Fellow of Michigan Pharmacists Association award, announced over the weekend at the MPA's annual convention and exposition in Detroit. According to the MPA, the award "recognizes achievements and dedication to the practice of pharmacy, the community and MPA. The distinction signifies the recipient's actions well beyond the regular practice toward the advancement of pharmacy."

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new drug made by Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals for treating tumors of the digestive system, the agency said Monday.

The FDA announced the approval of Stivarga (regorafenib) for gastrointestinal stromal tumors that could not be removed through surgery or had spread to other parts of the body and were no longer responding to treatment with Novartis' Gleevec (imatinib) or Pfizer's Sutent (sunitinib).

NEW YORK — One of the Food and Drug Administration's chief duties is ensuring the quality of food and drug products, and that was the focus of a keynote address delivered Friday morning by FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg at the Generic Pharmaceutical Association's annual meeting.

In the address, viewed via webcast, Hamburg addressed issues ranging from quality to drug shortages to follow-on biologics, praising the generics industry's role in contributing more than $1 trillion in savings to the healthcare system over the past decade.

IRVINGTON, N.Y. — Less than one-quarter of American adults have ever had a skin check by a dermatologist despite rising rates of skin cancer, according to a new survey.

FLINT, Mich. — Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy has hired a former information technology executive as its director of marketing.

The company announced Wednesday the appointment of James Kosmerick as director of marketing. Kosmerick was previously creative and marketing director for Bay City, Mich.-based TransIT Solutions. He also worked as an art director and designer at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.