Drug Topics - December 10, 2007 - (Page 22)

22 DRUG TOPICS DECEMBER 10, 2007 www.drugtopics.com Cover Story FAIR Judy Chi f a weather analogy can be used, do you expect your business conditions to be sunny or storm-ridden in 2008? No one knows how next year will turn out, but there are some markers you can anticipate. Community pharmacists can expect problems on their hands over average manufacturer price (AMP) at the start of the year, followed by the need for tamper-resistant Rx pads in April. For hospital R.Ph.s, they have to guard against hospital-acquired infections, since Medicare won’t be paying for the care associated with HAIs next year. Both community and hospital pharmacists can look forward to a knockdown, drag-out Presidential race in November that OR An exclusive survey of pharmacists reveals which way they think the winds will blow in 2008 I could determine how health care is provided in the future. To assess how pharmacists view their fortunes, once again Drug Topics sent an on-line year-end survey to community R.Ph.s, chain executives, and hospital pharmacists on our circulation list. Fielded in October, the survey obtained responses from 460 community R.Ph.s, 222 hospital R.Ph.s, and 30 chain executives. To supplement the chain responses, additional phone interviews were conducted with select chain representatives. Among the questions we asked the three groups were what they expect for their sales, salaries, and staffing for 2008. Starting on the next page are in-depth results from each of the three sectors. DT 2007 playbook: Like a picaresque novel L ike Don Quixote tilting at windmills, pharmacy spent much of 2007 fighting against the implementation of average manufacturer price (AMP) for Medicaid generic drugs. But as predominant as this issue was, there were many others that took center stage this past year, including the following: Turning points: CPT codes that recognize pharmacists for medication therapy management switched from temporary to permanent status, while the National Provider Identifier (NPI) came into being. Major mergers: CVS hooked up with Caremark, Rite Aid bought Brooks/Eckerd, and Walgreens bagged both OptionCare specialty pharmacies and Take Care clinics. Who’s in: Steve Anderson took the reins at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, while Kerry Weems was nominated to head the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. What’s out: Cough and cold products for tots were withdrawn, while Pfizer’s inhaled insulin Exubera exited stage left. New names: Mirixa (formerly Community MTM Services) made its debut. So did ICERx for emergency preparedness. What’s hot: Specialty drugs were all the rage, in-store clinics took the country by storm, while MRSA (methicillin-resistant S. aureus) took on epidemic proportions. What’s not: All too many drugs fell from grace, from Glaxo’s Avandia (rosiglitazone) to the erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, and stronger black box warnings were added to everything from Trasylol (aprotinin injection, Bayer), which has since been withdrawn, to antidepressants. Thumbs up: A third class of drugs, long a dream deferred for pharmacy, got a receptive hearing from the Food & Drug Administration at last. Thumbs down: Acomplia (or Zimulti, rimonabant, sanofi-aventis) for obesity, Pristiq (desvenlafaxine, Wyeth) for menopause, and many other drugs did not get FDA approval. Closer to home, 2007 was notable for being the 150th anniversary of Drug Topics. But for one respondent who took part in our business outlook survey, the major news of this year was the “drug overdose of a blonde star (no names of course).” Photos: Jim Shive http://www.drugtopics.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Drug Topics - December 10, 2007

Drug Topics - December 10, 2007 Latebreakers Latebreakers in Depth Letters Health-System Edition - Cover Story Clinical Practice Professional Practice Special Report Technology Community Practice Unraveling Medicare 150 Years of American Pharmacy Rx Care In the Pipeline Cover Story: Fair or foul? Self-Care Chains and Business Government and Law Continuing Education: Natural Medicines for Bone Health New Products Advertisers Index Classified Viewpoint

Drug Topics - December 10, 2007

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