Content about Washington

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Rural Health Association on Wednesday sent a letter to U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., strongly supporting the bill she introduced in March — H.R. 4215, the Medicare Pharmacy Transparency and Fair Auditing Act. The bill helps safeguard patient access to independent community pharmacists and addresses abusive pharmacy auditing practices, while allowing legitimate Medicare Part D anti-fraud oversight to continue.

WASHINGTON — Making a direct appeal to teens, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association has created the website DXMstories.org that directly engages young adults around the dangers of dextromethorphan abuse with provocative video clips featuring peer anecdotes.

FERNDALE, Wash. — Botanical Labs on Monday recalled 38 bottles of its 33.8-oz. "Wellesse Digestive 3 in 1 Health" liquid dietary supplement and 275 bottles of its 16-oz. "Wellesse Digestive Health 3 in 1" liquid dietary supplement, because of a potential contamination with salmonella, the Food and Drug Administration advised consumers Thursday.

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Coinstar is bringing its coffee kiosk to various retail channels through an exclusive agreement with Starbucks-owned Seattle's Best Coffee.

WASHINGTON — The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board announced the update of the pharmacy technician certification exam blueprint.

While much of the PTCE's content remains unchanged, the PTCB said the blueprint has been reorganized into nine domains, called "knowledge areas," each with a number of sub-domains. This organization gives the new blueprint a knowledge focus and conveys more information about the type and amount of content in the exam. The "knowledge areas" are:

• Pharmacology for technicians;

WASHINGTON — The number of retailers that fell victim to organized retail crime groups has increased, according to the National Retail Federation's "Organized Retail Crime Survey."

Of the 125 retail companies surveyed for NRF's eighth annual survey, a record-setting (96%) said their company has been the victim of organized retail crime in the past year, up from 94.5% last year. Another 87.7% said ORC activity in the United States has grown over the past three years.

FLINT, Mich. — The leader of the country's largest privately owned specialty pharmacy provider is going to Washington, D.C.

Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy said Thursday that CEO Phil Hagerman had received an invitation, along with other business leaders, from the White House Business Council and Business Forward to attend a one-day forum on jobs and the economy, and opportunities for collaboration between the private sector and government.

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed legislation that reauthorizes the Food and Drug Administration’s prescription drug user fee programs that are scheduled to expire in September. H.R. 5651 passed the House by a vote of 387 to 5.

The bill, a version of which already passed through the Senate, now heads to committee where the House and Senate versions of the bill can be reconciled before Oct. 1 and submitted to the president. According to published reports, the Senate version would require more scrutiny for some new devices.

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives will be debating H.R. 5651 Wednesday afternoon — a bill that, if passed, will reauthorize the Prescription Drug User Fee Act. 

The Senate passed a similar measure last week by a vote of 96-to-1 with three senators not voting.

WASHINGTON — Dietary supplement industry champion Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, last week led efforts to strike down an amendment that would have dramatically overregulated the dietary supplement industry.

WASHINGTON — With the digital age in full swing, many retailers have reported that their online sales are being boosted by orders made via a tablet, according to the 2012 "State of Retailing Online" survey from Shop.org and Forrester Research.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, once was among the most feared childhood diseases and was a frequent killer of young children. Today, it's mostly under control, a testament to the importance of vaccinations.

(THE NEWS: Pertussis cases increase tenfold in Washington over May 2011. For the full story, click here )