Posts by psm2016
Upcoming BBC Series focuses on counterfeit products, including medicine orders that come with free ‘Bonus Viagra’
An upcoming BBC series entitled "Fake Britain" will demonstrate how easy it is for patients to be tricked by unscrupulous pharmaceutical vendors online. The series, part of the BBC's "Fake Britain" week, focuses on counterfeit products of all types. In the series the chair of the European Alliance for Access to Safe Medicines, Jim Thomson,…
[...]No Such Thing as a “Safe Country” for Drug Importation
With talks about drug importation continuing in Congress, drug importation supporters argue that if the United States allows importation only from “safe countries,” such as Canada and the United Kingdom, than most of drug safety concerns would be eliminated. However, when it comes to drug importation, there is no such thing as a “safe” country.
[...]Thoughts and responses on “Why Steal A Truck Full Of Drugs”
Our recent roundtable discussion post, “Why Steal A Truck Full Of Drugs” generated a lot of attention for this usually obscure policy issue. One reader who is a veteran colleague of drug diversion enforcement, Carlos M. Aquino at PharmaDiversion, LLC, wrote: I just read, “Why Steal a Truck Full of Drugs?” and I have to…
[...]Mainous AG, Everett CJ, Post RE, Diaz VA, Hueston, WJ. Availability of Antibiotics for Purchase Without a Prescription on the Internet. Ann Fam Med. 2009;7(5):431-435
Abstract. PURPOSE Reducing inappropriate use of antibiotics is key to many antibiotic resistance initiatives. Most initiatives, however, focus almost exclusively on controlling prescribing by health care clinicians and do not focus on patient self-medication. The purpose of this study was to examine antibiotics available to patients without a prescription, a phenomenon on the Internet. METHODS…
[...]Winegar A, Shepherd MD*, Lawson KA, Richards K. Comparison of claim percent gross margin earned by Texas community independent pharmacies for dual-eligible beneficiaries claims before and after Medicare Part D. J Am Pharm Assoc. 2009 Sept/Oct; 49(5):617-2
Abstract. OBJECTIVES: To describe dual eligibles’ claims before and after Medicare Part D and to evaluate the effect that Medicare Part D has had on the claim percent gross margin (CPGM) earned by Texas community independent pharmacies.
DESIGN: Nonexperimental time series study.
SETTING: Texas, October 2005 through September 2006.
PARTICIPANTS: 313 community independent pharmacies.
INTERVENTION: Review of more than 150,000 Medicaid and 300,000 Medicare Part D claims acquired from a drug claims processor.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: CPGM per prescription claim before and after the implementation of Medicare Part D, controlling for generic/brand drug status.
RESULTS: The mean CPGM for prescriptions dispensed before Part D (Medicaid claims) was 26.7%. The mean CPGM for claims dispensed after Part D (Medicare claims) was 17.0% (using ingredient costs in 2006 dollars) or 20.4% (using ingredient costs adjusted to 2005 dollars), a reduction of 36.3% and 23.6%, respectively. Under both Medicaid and Part D, pharmacies earned higher margins for generic drugs (39.9% and 29.5%, respectively) than for brand-name drugs (8.7% and 8.3%, respectively).
CONCLUSION: These results support community pharmacy assertions of lower reimbursements from Part D payers compared with Medicaid payers. Based on these results, pharmacies can respond to this evolving environment by carefully reviewing their Part D plans’ impact on CPGM and taking available steps to increase the proportion of generic drugs dispensed to Medicare beneficiaries.
[...]Medical Sales Representative Caught Selling Fake Flu Vaccines
View larger map What: The National Bureau of Investigation in the Philippines caught a former medical sales representative selling fake Vaxigrip – a flu vaccine – throughout the country. When: July 28, 2009 Where: The Philippines, including the cities of Manila and Makati, as well as the Laguna province. Who: Sanofi Pasteur, Sanofi-Aventis Group Additional…
[...]2 Million Counterfeit Needles Found in Europe
View larger map What: More than two million counterfeit insulin needles were found in established European distribution channels. When: July 1, 2009 Where: Netherlands, Poland and the United Kingdom How: A Dutch company purchased insulin needles from a wholesaler in Malaysia, which claimed the needles came from Iran. The needles were subsequently distributed throughout the…
[...]Counterfeit Heparin Blamed for Worldwide Deaths
View larger map What: Counterfeit heparin has been linked to the deaths of 81 people and resulted in hundreds of allergic reactions in the United States. Batches of contaminated heparin were also detected in 11 other countries – resulting in as many as 68 more deaths. Reports issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration…
[...]Puchert T, Lochmann D, Menezes JC, Reich G. Near-infrared chemical imaging (NIR-CI) for counterfeit drug identification–a four-stage concept with a novel approach of data processing (Linear Image Signature). J Pharm Biomed Anal. 2010;51(1):138-45.
A new stage concept was developed to reliably identify counterfeit tablets which are very similar to the genuine drug product. This concept combines single-point near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and near-infrared chemical imaging (NIR-CI) with statistical variance analysis. The advantage of NIR-CI over NIRS is the potential to determine not only the amount, but also the spatial…
[...]Counterfeit Drug Ring Busted in Montreal
View larger map What: Officials seized 15,000 counterfeit pills and arrested nine people during raids in the Montreal region. Counterfeit Viagra and cancer drugs were among the seized pills. When: August 6, 2009 Where: Montreal, Canada Additional details: According to the Montreal Gazette, the Royal Canadian Mounted Policy (RCMP) seized 15,000 counterfeit pills and arrested…
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