Increase of the Pharmacy Co-Payment Expected in Current Economic Climate The Pharmacy Guild of New Zealand (the Guild) believes that todays increase of the co-payment for prescription items from $3 to $5 was expected because the current funding was unsustainable. The co-payment is the fee patients pay per prescription item when collecting their medicines from their community pharmacy. This co-payment is collected by pharmacies on behalf of the Government, as the patient contribution to the cost of their medicines. Most New Zealanders now pay $3 per prescription item up to a maximum of 20 items per family per year, after which items are free. This charge will increase to $5 per item on 1 January 2013, up to the 20 item maximum a year. This is the first time the prescription charge has been increased in almost 20 years. There will continue to be no charge for prescription items for children under six years old The real value of the $3 co-payment has significantly decreased over time, says the Guilds President, Karen Crisp. Health comprises half of all Government spending and we understand the difficult fiscal environment we are currently in. Community pharmacists can help patients get the maximum benefit … Continue reading →

HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Aetna (NYSE:AET) today announced that it is adding five new capabilities to Aetna Rx Check, a collection of programs designed to promote safety and prevent the misuse of various prescription drugs such as pain medications and antibiotics. Aetna Rx Check also scans for other drug-related issues, such as drug interactions, that have unnecessary and potentially dangerous consequences to the patient. The Aetna Rx Check Program uses a computer system to analyze members prescription drug claims. The program identifies opportunities to help doctors improve quality of care, prevent misuse, and reduce waste in the health care system. When opportunities to improve care are found, physicians are alerted to possible drug-to-drug interactions, duplication in drug therapy or other serious complications. New programs for 2012: Therapeutic Optimization: Works to switch members taking multiple doses of a medication, to one dose per day by increasing the strength of the medication. Streamlining Therapy Program: Encourages members to try a single drug before switching to a combination product. For example, current guidelines from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute recommend that patients suffering from asthma use a standalone inhaler before adding a combination treatment that is more powerful and more expensive. Length … Continue reading →

The University and a former professor in the College of Pharmacy have agreed to pay $300,000 to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy to settle a civil lawsuit nearly five years after it was first filed in federal court. The settlement agreement pitting former professor Flynn Warren Jr., the University and the Board of Regents against the NABP involved accusations of copyright infringement and misappropriation of trade secrets. In the agreement signed by the parties on April 20, UGA and Warren consented to several conditions, including promising to no longer copy or disseminate NABP copyrighted material and ensure an attorney in the University Office of Legal Affairs will monitor this compliance. WARREN As part of the agreement NABP voluntarily dismissed with prejudice its lawsuit against current pharmacy professor Henry Cobb, who was accused of copyright infringement in the suit. The lawsuit accused the professors of distributing copyrighted test questions which forced the pharmacy licensure exam to be suspended nationwide for more than two months. The controversy began in August 2007, when the NAPB filed a case against Warren and the Regents for copyright infringement, misappropriation of trade secrets and breach of contract. As a pharmacy professor at the University … Continue reading →

KABUL At least seven Afghan civilians were killed in a pharmacy on Monday in a suspected suicide bombing, an official said, the latest attack in a spate of rising violence in the country. The blast took place in Ghormach, a remote and a restive district in a relatively secure province of northwestern Faryab province, provincial governor Abdul Ahad Shafaq said. The initial information we have says that either a suicide bomber or a blast has killed seven civilians and wounded eight others, Shafaq said by telephone. Among the dead was a member of a provincial council in adjacent Badghis province, Shafaq said. The council member was meeting with a group of local residents in a pharmacy when the blast was detonated. Shafaq said he was basing his account on radio communications he had received from the isolated area, because mobile phone service was not working. Shafaq did not have further details and could not say what the target or motive was for the blast, which was also confirmed by an official with Afghanistans interior ministry. No group claimed responsibility. The deaths come a day after unknown gunmen shot dead a Taliban leader-turned-peace-negotiator in a bold attack near a downtown part … Continue reading →