Phamacist e-View for June 16, 2005

Mail Order's No Friend to Pharmacies

Marty Mintz, owner of Northern Pharmacy and Medical Equipment, is feeling the pressure as more of his patients switch to mail order prescriptions. read more»

Study Finds Many Online Discount Pharmacies Are Misrepresenting Themselves

Of the 11,000 Internet sites designed to look like Canadian pharmacies selling discounted drugs to consumers, only 1,009 actually sold prescription products. And of those, only 214 had registration data indicating they were a Canadian company. read more»

Medicare Urges Drug Choices

U.S. House Agrees to Table Big Medicaid Cuts

FDA Approves Pfizer's Lyrica as Epilepsy Add-On Treatment for Partial Onset Seizures

Pfizer Inc has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to market LyricaTM (pregabalin) for adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures in adults with epilepsy. read more»

FDA Approves New Pfizer Antibiotic

The FDA said Pfizer could begin marketing its new Zmax oral antibiotic for certain types of sinusitis (sinus infections) and pneumonia in adults. read more»

Drug Extends Survival for Multiple Myeloma Patients

The largest study of its kind has confirmed the effectiveness of the drug Velcade in holding back disease progression after relapse in patients with the deadly blood cancer multiple myeloma. read more»

Drug May Help Obese Teens Lose Weight

A prescription drug used to block fat absorption in the body may help obese teenagers lose weight without serious side effects, a new study said. read more»

Parkinson's Disease Vaccine Shows Promise

Human Tests of Experimental TB Drug Starts

Biotech Drug Shows Promise Against Ulcerative Colitis

Walgreens to Expand Managed Care Business

Walgreens announced it is aggressively recruiting employees to staff its managed care business, which operates under the name Walgreens Health Services. read more»

NCPA Offers Long Term Community Care Certificate Program

This course, which will be held at the Wyndham Baltimore Inner Harbor on June 24-26, 2005, focuses on how to implement or expand long-term care services in your community. read more»

Preferred Utah Drug List Back in Spotlight

A prescription drug purchase plan initially designed two years ago in an effort to reduce the state's burgeoning Medicaid costs is back on the drawing board. read more»

Wisconsin State Pool for Health Benefits Proposed

A bipartisan pair of state lawmakers are recommending a radical change to the way health insurance is bought and sold in Wisconsin by proposing the creation of a statewide insurance purchasing pool. read more»

North Carolina Senate Proposes Cuts to Medicaid

Pfizer to Acquire Vicuron

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. will acquire Pennsylvania-based Vicuron Pharmaceuticals Inc. for $1.9 billion, the companies announced. read more»

Bristol Vows Advertising Curbs

Amid mounting criticism of advertising drugs directly to consumers, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. pledged not to promote any of its new medicines directly to patients for at least a year. read more»