March, 2024

article thumbnail

Independent Pharmacies Continue to Face Financial Hardships as the Clock Ticks on PBM Reform

Drug Topics

As pharmacy benefit managers gain leverage to continue driving up drug prices, local pharmacies struggle to keep up and Congress has been called to act—but it might be too late

article thumbnail

Navigating the Psychedelic Renaissance: Emerging Mental Health Therapies and the Pharmacist’s Role

Pharmacy Times

Psychedelic medicines such as psilocybin, MDMA, ketamine, and LSD have been shown to have a significant impact on conditions such as major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder in clinical trials.

145
145
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Trending Sources

article thumbnail

Covid’s scientific silver lining: A chance to watch the human immune system respond in real time

STAT

While an increasingly anxious world watched a new coronavirus spread across the globe in early 2020, veteran immunologist Rafi Ahmed quickly grasped that his field was about to experience something truly extraordinary. His former student Ali Ellebedy was gnawed by frustration as Covid shutdowns stalled his influenza research; it took until the summer, when mass vaccination planning hit his radar, before the same realization kicked in.

article thumbnail

How Amazon Pharmacy is using AI to deliver medications faster as it expands same-day delivery

Fierce Healthcare

Amazon Pharmacy expanded its same-day medication delivery service to New York City and Los Angeles, with plans to add a dozen more U.S. | Amazon Pharmacy expanded its same-day medication delivery service to New York City and Los Angeles, with plans to add a dozen more U.S. cities by the end of the year, the company announced Tuesday.

article thumbnail

Position Your Pharmacy for Expansion

Speaker: Chris Antypas and Josh Halladay

Access to limited distribution drugs and payer contracts are key to pharmacy expansion. But how do you prepare your operations to take the next step? Meaningful data: Collect and share clinical data regarding outcomes, utilization, and more Reporting: Limited distribution models require efficient tracking and reporting systems Workflows: Align workflows with specific pharma and payer contractual requirements For in-depth, expert insights on pharmacy expansion, watch this webinar from Inovalon.

article thumbnail

BioNTech hit with 'notice of default' from NIH in COVID-19 vaccine royalty dispute

Fierce Pharma

Even as Germany's BioNTech deals with ongoing declines of its revenue and share price, it's facing another serious concern: U.S. | Even as Germany's BioNTech deals with ongoing declines of its revenue and share price, it's facing another serious concern: U.S. officials are pressing the company to pay royalties linked to the commercialization of its lucrative Pfizer-partnered COVID-19 vaccine.

Vaccines 137
article thumbnail

When £17m isn’t enough: FTSE firms plead to pay bosses millions more

The Guardian - Pharmaceutical Industry

Confronted by the huge salaries on offer in the US, London boardrooms are lobbying to be allowed to make their own bosses even wealthier There was a sharp intake of breath last month when the pharmaceuticals group AstraZeneca cemented chief executive Pascal Soriot’s position as the best-paid FTSE 100 boss with a £17m pay package , up from £15.3m a year earlier.

Packaging 132

More Trending

article thumbnail

Study: Researchers Identify 25 Air Pollutants Associated With Asthma Symptoms

Pharmacy Times

Investigators found that 1,1,1 trichloroethane; 2-nitropropane; and 2,4,6 trichlorophenol were significantly associated with asthma symptoms for 3 exposure periods.

164
164
article thumbnail

Multiple sclerosis has distinct subtypes, study finds, pointing to different treatments

STAT

For years, researchers have been hopeful they could get under the hood of multiple sclerosis. The neurological condition shows up in over 2.5 million people around the world, but it doesn’t always look the same. If science could point its light in just the right way, patients might be sorted into disease subgroups, and treated more successfully depending on their kind of MS.

article thumbnail

Diabetes management tools not worth the cost, study finds. But digital health companies push back on 'flawed' analysis

Fierce Healthcare

A new analysis pours cold water on the effectiveness of widely used digital diabetes management solutions, stirring up discussion about how best to evaluate the growing market of digital health too | The Peterson Health Technology Institute's analysis assessed whether digital diabetes solutions improve users' health outcomes over "usual care.

139
139
article thumbnail

With Pfizer struggling in 2023, CEO Bourla hit with 35% pay cut to $21.6M

Fierce Pharma

Pfizer knew 2023 was going to be a challenging year of transition. But even the drugmaker was surprised by the plummeting demand for its COVID-19 products, missing badly on its 2023 guidance. | After a difficult year for Pfizer, in which its share price fell by 44%, CEO Albert Bourla’s compensation fell by 35% from $33 million in 2022 to $21.6 million in 2023.

145
145
article thumbnail

What the FDA's New Dosage Guidance Means for the Future of Clinical Research

Speaker: Dr. Ben Locwin - Biopharmaceutical Executive & Healthcare Futurist

What will the future hold for clinical research? A recent draft from the FDA provides valuable insight. In "Optimizing the Dosage of Human Prescription Drugs and Biological Products for the Treatment of Oncologic Diseases," the FDA notes that "targeted therapies demonstrate different dose-response relationships compared to cytotoxic chemotherapy, such that doses below the Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD) may have similar efficacy to the MTD but with fewer toxicities.

article thumbnail

Nanoscope preps filing for retinitis pigmentosa gene therapy

pharmaphorum

Nanoscope Therapeutics is on the brink of filing for FDA approval of what could be the first gene therapy for incurable eye disease retinitis pigmentosa (RP) that can be used regardless of underlying genetic mutations.

FDA 122
article thumbnail

South Africans take on big pharma for access to ‘miracle’ cystic fibrosis drug

The Guardian - Pharmaceutical Industry

Cheri Nel cannot afford Vertex’s Trikafta medicine, so she is suing to end ‘patent abuse’ and allow a generic version Cheri Nel has a blunt message for the multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical company Vertex: “Any person that dies from today – that’s on you.” Vertex makes a “miracle drug” called Trikafta that can transform the lives of people with cystic fibrosis.

article thumbnail

Pharmacy Focus: Policy Edition - Overview of California's Stop Dangerous Pharmacies Act

Pharmacy Times

Ron Lanton discusses California's Stop Dangerous Pharmacies Act, which aims to address understaffed chain pharmacies and reduce medication errors by implementing new regulations around pharmacy staffing, error reporting, and unsafe working conditions.

139
139
article thumbnail

Disparities in donor acceptance rates point to need for more equitable heart transplant care

STAT

When a patient is going through end-stage heart failure, the best treatment is to get a heart transplant. The basic steps are familiar: First a patient gets on the waiting list, and then the wait begins for the offers. In recent years, access to donor hearts has gone up thanks to a change in heart allocation policy, but there are still gender- and race-based disparities in the acceptance rate of a donor heart offer by transplant teams, according to new research published Monday in the Journal of

136
136
article thumbnail

5 Reasons to Upgrade Your Pharmacy Management Software

Are you still using workarounds to manage your daily operations? To achieve peak performance, it's time to explore other options for specialty and infusion pharmacy software. Streamline pharmacy operations and improve clinical performance with automated processing, real-time data exchange, and electronic decision support. Download this helpful infographic to: Drive efficiency and patient adherence from referral receipt to delivery and ongoing care – all with our Pharmacy Cloud.

article thumbnail

Google's healthcare AI ambitions: New model for personal health coaching and next steps for gen AI

Fierce Healthcare

Google is doubling down on its ambitions for healthcare AI by exploring how generative AI can help clinicians in medical decision-making, understand lab and imaging information and provide con | Google is hyper-focused on generative AI in healthcare, pushing forward research to advance gen AI capabilities that can help clinicians in medical decision-making, understand lab and imaging information and provide consumers with personalized health insights based on their wearable data.

143
143
article thumbnail

BioNTech's shares tumble—again—amid continued COVID vaccine sales slide

Fierce Pharma

Four months ago, when BioNTech slashed its 2023 revenue projection from 5 billi | When BioNTech reported its fourth-quarter earnings Wednesday, it was another harsh reminder of the plummeting demand for COVID-19 vaccines. Sales came to 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) for the fourth quarter and 3.8 billion euros ($4.1 billion) for 2023, coming up short of expectations.

Vaccines 132
article thumbnail

Cannabinoids show promise in acute migraine clinical trial

pharmaphorum

Inhaled cannabinoids have been shown to perform better than placebo in providing pain relief for people suffering from acute migraine in a clinical trial

145
145
article thumbnail

5 vitamins for your kidneys

The Checkup by Singlecare

Your kidneys are responsible for filtering water and waste from urine and blood. About 15% of American adults have kidney disease, which impairs this process. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) increases a person’s risk of anemia, infections, nutrient deficiencies, and depression. If you have CKD or are on dialysis, you may need to eat a renal diet that protects you from kidney damage by limiting phosphorus, potassium , and sodium.

Dosage 111
article thumbnail

FDA Approves Semaglutide for New Indication Involving Cardiovascular Disease

Pharmacy Times

Semaglutide (Wegovy; Novo Nordisk) reduces the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack, and stroke in adults with cardiovascular disease and either obesity or overweight when combined with the standard-of-care.

FDA 160
article thumbnail

STAT+: Why the world’s most expensive drug might not be all that overpriced

STAT

The staff of the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, or ICER, are known as the nerds of the drug industry: bespectacled killjoys who emerge a few times a year to scold drugmakers for pricing their latest cancer or MS advance far beyond reason. But last year, its staff sat down and concluded a forthcoming treatment was worth up to $3.9 million — more than any medicine in history, more than a 45-year supply of Humira, the autoimmune drug often held up as an emblem of America’

122
122
article thumbnail

HIMSS24: Oracle Health builds out generative AI tools in its quest to 'eliminate clicks' for clinicians

Fierce Healthcare

ORLANDO, Florida — Software giant Oracle continues to build out generative AI tools in its healthcare solutions as it debuted a new service for care management this week and plans to roll out | Oracle is integrating generative AI and ambient listening technologies into its EHR to streamline medical notetaking for clinicians. "We're not trying to go from 10 clicks to seven clicks.

140
140
article thumbnail

FDA approves first MASH drug: Madrigal's Rezdiffra breaks ground in notorious biopharma graveyard

Fierce Pharma

The decades-long wait for an effective treatment for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) has ended, as the FDA has approved the first drug for the fatty liver disease. | The decades-long wait for an effective treatment for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) has ended. The FDA has approved Madrigal's resmetirom under the brand name Rezdiffra as the first drug for the fatty liver disease.

FDA 139
article thumbnail

AI in Drug Discovery: Day One

pharmaphorum

There is no denying that artificial intelligence (AI) has captured the imagination of innovators working across the pharmaceutical sector. The drug discovery space is no different, with myriad applications promising to revolutionise the way that researchers and sponsors approach identifying and progressing new drug candidates.

117
117
article thumbnail

Pain is reduced by almost half with cannabis-based medicines – report finds

Outsourcing Pharma

On March 7, Celadon Pharmaceuticals plc, a leading UK-based pharmaceutical company specializing in cannabis-based medicines, unveiled promising findings from an early economic analysis of its chronic pain clinical trial, dubbed CANPAIN.

article thumbnail

FDA Approves Macitentan, Tadalafil Combination Tablet for PAH

Pharmacy Times

The combination tablet (Opsynvi; Johnson & Johnson) can also be used for individuals with pulmonary arterial hypertension who are being treated with stable doses of macitentan and tadalafil as separate tables.

FDA 139
article thumbnail

STAT+: Some nonprofit hospitals spend less on charity care than they receive in tax breaks, new analysis shows

STAT

A new study of hospitals’ charity care spending suggests nonprofit hospitals really aren’t that different from their for-profit counterparts. One major benefit of being a nonprofit hospital is receiving tax exemptions on property taxes, income taxes, and sales taxes. Experts told STAT that implies a “social contract” with taxpayers, where these hospitals will help take care of the most vulnerable.

Hospitals 108
article thumbnail

HIMSS24: 'Fasten your seatbelts'—Hackensack Meridian CEO predicts acceleration of gen AI to help healthcare workforce

Fierce Healthcare

ORLANDO — It's almost impossible to have a conversation at HIMSS24 without the topic of artificial intelligence or generative AI coming up. | How will the conversations about AI in healthcare change by next year's HIMSS conference? Hackensack Meridian CEO Robert Garrett predicts that pilot projects underway now will roll out into practice.

141
141
article thumbnail

AstraZeneca pledges £650M in UK investments to boost vaccine capabilities, expand near HQ

Fierce Pharma

AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot, who has been critical of the U.K.’s business environment for the life sciences industry, is directing a big chunk of money into the Big Pharma’s home country. | AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot, who has been critical of the U.K.’s business environment for the life sciences industry, is directing £650 million into the Big Pharma’s home country.

Vaccines 136
article thumbnail

Navigating digital transformation in pharma: The rise of mobile messaging

pharmaphorum

Popular mobile messaging apps that offer end-to-end encryption for their users' communications means that the content of messages is only accessible to the sender and the recipient. However, like any software, they still have potential cybersecurity risks and compliance concerns that users should be aware of - especially in pharma.

article thumbnail

Who’s getting left behind in the weight loss bonanza?

PharmaVoice

As the new weight loss drugs take the world by storm, companies in other areas are battening the hatches for when slimmer patients need fewer medical interventions.

111
111
article thumbnail

FDA Expands Label for Bempedoic Acid to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk, With or Without Statins

Pharmacy Times

Bempedoic acid (Nexletol; Esperion) and bempedoic acid and ezetimibe (Nexlizet; Esperion) are the only LDL-C lowering non-statin drugs indicated for primary prevention patients.

Labelling 141
article thumbnail

FDA authorizes new drug to protect immune compromised from Covid-19

STAT

The Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized a new antibody to protect immunocompromised individuals against Covid-19.  The drug, known as Pemgarda and marketed by the biotech Invivyd, is the first such drug to become available since the agency pulled AstraZeneca’s Evusheld off the market in January 2023. New Omicron variants had rendered Evusheld ineffective.

article thumbnail

AHA: 94% of hospitals financially impacted by Change Healthcare's cyberattack

Fierce Healthcare

Nearly every hospital is feeling the consequences of Change Healthcare’s cyberattack on their finances, patient care delivery, or both, according to reports from almost 1,000 hospitals compiled by | Almost 60% of surveyed hospitals reported at least $1 million of impacted revenues per day, and 74% said that the incident has had "direct" implications on patient care within their facilities.

Hospitals 139
article thumbnail

With Merck's key PAH approval on tap, Johnson & Johnson wins nod for combo tablet

Fierce Pharma

With the FDA expected this week to approve a first-in-class treatment from Merck for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), Johnson & Johnson has beaten its New Jersey rival to the punch with a | With the FDA expected this week to approve a first-in-class treatment from Merck for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), Johnson & Johnson has beaten its New Jersey rival to the punch with a nod from the U.S. regulator for its newest PAH treatment.

FDA 120