Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - (Page 5) 5 NEWS Roundup< < < Chains and Business CVS and CENTURY 21 team up with Easter Seals around Chicagoland CVS/pharmacy and CENTURY 21 Real Estate LLC launched a new initiative recently. In the first half of June, consumers who visited any Chicagoland CENTURY 21 office or open house received a $25 CVS/pharmacy gift card when a new or transferred prescription was brought to CVS for use through June 15. CVS Caremark will make a $5,000 donation to Easter Seals to support services for people with disabilities around Chicago. has reached a settlement with the attorneys general of 28 states and the District of Columbia over its improper statin switching practices. As part of the settlement, Express Scripts agreed to pay $9.5 million to the states and $200,000 to patients (not to exceed $25 per patient) for their physician visits and tests related to the drug switches. In addition, the St. Louis PBM must follow new disclosure and ethical standards, such as informing prescribers if it stands to gain from certain drug switches. State authorities hope that the settlements involving Medco, CVS Caremark, and Express Scripts—some of the country’s largest PBMs—offer a cautionary tale for the PBM industry to uphold ethical standards in their dealings with their clients. Kroger, The Little Clinic partner to offer customers in-store clinics The Kroger Co. and the Little Clinic LLC announced a partnership aimed at bringing walk-in medical clinics and consumer health solutions to stores across the country. Kroger has made a signifiant investment in The Little Clinic that will support a substantial clinic rollout. The Little Clinic currently operates 26 walk-in medical clincis inside Kroger's family of stores. Abbott recalls infant formula with iron powder Abbott notified consumers and healthcare professionals of the recall of two lots of Calcilo XD Low-Calcium/ Vitamin D-Free Infant Formula with Iron powder, a low-calcium and Vitamin D-free infant formula specifically designed for the nutritional support of infants and children with hypercalcemia. The product, distributed in the United States between June 6, 2006, and April 17, 2008, is being recalled because small amounts of air may have entered the can, resulting in product oxidation. Consumption of highly oxidized foods can cause gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Abbott says parents should contact their healthcare professional if they have any questions or concerns. The 2008 MedWatch Safety Summary, and the manufacturer's press release, is available on the Food & Drug Administration Web site Government & Law Lawmakers urge delay in Medicare bid program for home medical equipment Nearly one-third of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives urged a one-year delay in the controversial and flawed "competitive bidding" program for home medical equipment in Medicare. Two letters signed by 132 members of Congress urge the leaders of the Ways and Means Committee and its subcommittee on health to "delay implementation of this program until outstanding issues can be resolved." The letters cite homecare providers that were excluded from the bidding program "apparently through no fault of their own," discrepancies in information and contract awards, and lack of transparency at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services about the evaluation of bids and the calculation of reimbursement rates. The bidding program applies to oxygen therapy, power wheelchairs, hospital beds, and other categories of durable medical equipment. Walgreens settles drug switching allegations for $35 million Walgreens has paid $35 million to 42 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to settle allegations it overcharged Medicaid by switching dosage forms in filling generic Prozac, Zantac, and Eldepryl prescriptions. The settlement resulted from a suit filed by Behn and Wyetzner in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. This is the third case Behn & Wyetzner, Chartered, has handled for pharmacist whistleblower Bernard Lisitza. Prior generic drug switching cases by Lisitza resulted in a $37 million settlement earlier this year with CVS Caremark Corp., owner of CVS pharmacies, and a $50 million settlement in late 2006 with Omnicare. According to the complaint, Walgreen had been illegally switching between tablets and capsules of ranitidine (generic Zantac) and fluoxetine (generic Prozac) in order to charge higher prices to Medicaid. Express Scripts to pay more than $9 million to settle drug switching charges First it was Medco which settled in 2004. Then it was CVS Caremark which settled early this year. Now it’s Express Scripts’ turn. The pharmacy benefit manager http://www.expressscripts.com http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/cvs/gateway/cvsmain http://www.century21.com http://www.cvs.com/CVSApp/cvs/gateway/cvsmain http://www.century21.com http://www.abbott.com http://www.kroger.com/Pages/default.aspx http://www.thelittleclinic.com/default.asp http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Calcilo http://www.cms.hhs.gov/default.asp http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#Calcilo http://www.walgreens.com/default.jsp http://drugtopics.modernmedicine.com/drugtopics/Modern Medicine News/CVS-to-pay-almost-37-million-to-settle-switching-o/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/504333?contextCategoryId=10239&ref=25 http://drugtopics.modernmedicine.com/drugtopics/Business and Management/CVS-Caremark-Corp-to-pay-almost-37-million-on-reta/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/507178
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 Cargo Theft is Big Business, with Drugs a Major Target Can Motivational Interviewing Improve Patients' Drug Compliance Rates? Latest News Roundup Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 (Page 1) Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 (Page 2) Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Cargo Theft is Big Business, with Drugs a Major Target (Page 3) Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Can Motivational Interviewing Improve Patients' Drug Compliance Rates? (Page 4) Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Latest News Roundup (Page 5) Drug Topics - June 23, 2008 - Latest News Roundup (Page 6)
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