Content about Specialty Pharmacy

PERRYSBURG, Ohio — Prescription vial manufacturer Rexam has a deal with Rx Timer Cap to adapt the cap to its vials, Rexam said.

Rexam said the partnership would help improve medication adherence. The Rx Timer Cap has a built-in LCD timer that automatically counts the minutes and hours since patients last took their medication.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Men taking long-acting medications for chronic pain are almost five times more likely to have low testosterone levels, according to a new study by Kaiser Permanente.

The study, which the healthcare system called the first to show a significant difference in risk between short-acting and long-acting opioids, appeared in The Clinical Journal of Pain.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — A standards-development organization for the pharmacy services industry has updated a white paper on protecting consumers and patients from accidental overdoses of the painkiller acetaminophen.

The NCPDP announced the updated white paper, "NCPDP Recommendations for Improved Prescription Container Labels for Medicines Containing Acetaminophen Version 1.1."

WAUKESHA, Wis. — Over-the-counter products across the front-end are becoming a more and more important profit driver for independent pharmacy operators, Hamacher Resource Group and the Healthcare Distribution Management Association revealed Wednesday as part of new research titled "Independent Pharmacy Shoppers: Who, What, and Why?" The report places a spotlight on the independent pharmacy front-end customer and helps identify shopper behaviors, purchase preferences and potential barriers that stand in the way of further engagement with independents.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a Novartis drug for treating leukemia in children.

The FDA said Friday that it approved Gleevec (imatinib) for treating children newly diagnosed with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia, also known as Ph+ ALL.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new use for a cancer drug made by Roche unit Genentech, the agency said.

The FDA announced the approval of Avastin (bevacizumab) combined with fluoropyrimidine-irinotecan or fluoropyrimidine-oxaliplatin chemotherapy for treating colorectal cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, also known as metastatic colorectal cancer, or mCRC.

The drug is also approved for treating lung cancer, kidney cancer and brain cancer.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A new study indicated that some parents may not be sufficiently concerned about misuse of narcotic painkillers by children and teenagers.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — H. D. Smith on Tuesday announced the establishment of H. D. Smith Specialty Solutions, an organization structured to provide focus and alignment around specialty and traditional brand products, solutions and services. The wholesaler also announced the realignment of select executive leadership positions to best capitalize on the growing needs resulting from recent geographic and service expansions. These expansions include the acquisition of Valley Wholesale Drug in October 2012 and a planned majority ownership investment in Triplefin announced in January 2013.

NEW YORK — While regulations for biosimilars work their way through the Food and Drug Administration, state governments are already looking at legislation concerning the substitution of biosimilars for their branded counterparts, according to a legal affairs blog focused on the FDA.

In a post Friday on FDA Law Blog, the official blog of the law firm Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, attorney Kurt Karst wrote that several states were laying the groundwork for such legislation, recalling state-level antisubstitution laws targeting generics that were adopted in the 1970s.

RIDGEFIELD, Conn. — Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals has enrolled the first patients in its late-stage trial of a treatment for hepatitis C, the drug maker said Thursday.

BI Pharmaceuticals is conducting the "HCVerso" trial of an HCV drug that combines faldaprevir, the experimental compound BI 207127 and ribavirin. The company has established trial sites in more than 25 states.

WASHINGTON — More than 5,000 medicines are under development, of which 70% are potentially the first of their class, according to a new report.

CULVER CITY, Calif. — An advocacy group focused on a rare lung disorder is working with government authorities to educate patients about the need to get flu shots.

The Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis said it would partner with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to inform patients about the need for immunizations. PF is a disorder with no known cause or cure that causes scarring and deterioration of the lungs, affecting about 128,000 Americans.