Pharmacy Liability Case

This blog post is from the Wall Street Journal. It addresses whether a pharmacy in Nevada is liable for the actions of a patient who abused pharmacy drugs. The pharmacies in the area were sent a letter warning them of this particular woman. Does this knowledge hold them liable?

A lawsuit filed by the victims and their families against Wal-Mart, who dispensed a painkiller prescription to Copening, asks whether drugstores must use information at their disposal to protect the public from potentially dangerous customers. In this case, state officials had sent letters to 14 pharmacies in the Las Vegas area warning that Copening could be abusing drugs.

Must Read from the Washington Post

As mentioned in my newsletter, this article is from the October 29, 2009 edition of the Washington Post. It is entitled, "DEA Crackdown Hurts Nursing Home Residents Who Need Pain Drugs".

Heightened efforts by the Drug Enforcement Administration to crack down on narcotics abuse are producing a troubling side effect by denying some hospice and elderly patients needed pain medication, according to two Senate Democrats and a coalition of pharmacists and geriatric experts.

Tougher enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act, which tightly restricts the distribution of pain medicines such as morphine and Percocet, is causing pharmacies to balk and is leading to delays in pain relief for those patients and seniors in long-term-care facilities, wrote Sens. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).

The lawmakers wrote to Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. this month, urging that the Obama administration issue new directives to the DEA and support a possible legislative fix for the problem, which has bothered nursing home administrators and geriatric experts for years.

Alabama Supreme Court Case

In my upcoming newsletter, I address this Supreme Court case out of Alabama regarding the "learned intermediary" doctrine.

H1N1 Outbreak Tracking

Rhode Island is the first state to use electronic prescriptions to track outbreaks of the H1N1 virus.

"Surescripts is using information supplied by pharmacies to document how much Tamiflu and other antivirals are being dispensed to patients. The company is giving the data — categorized by zip codes of the pharmacies where the medicine is dispensed and the age group of the patient receiving it — to epidemiologists at the state health department."

American Pharmacy Educator Week

It is the inaugural American Pharmacy Educator Week. Celebrate the people that helped get you to where you are today.

DME

Here is a news story out of Montana regarding the official signing of the DME accreditation delay. I addressed this bill in a couple previous postings as well as my upcoming newsletter.

"Tester argued that the accreditation process can be expensive and time consuming for community pharmacies that are often the only option for seniors in rural communities. He also argued that accreditation is redundant, as pharmacies are already subject to oversight and regulation as medical professionals and as state-licensed businesses."

CVS GreenBag Tag

CVS is starting a program to reward users for turning down bags or using reusable bags. More information can be found here.

You know I'm in favor of moves that will protect trout habitats.

Prescriptions for OTC Decongestants?

As the meth problem continues, some communities are responding by requiring prescriptions for all medicines containing pseudophedrine. Oregon has a state-wide law and now a town in Missouri has passed a law locally requiring a prescription.

"The new law's critics include the Missouri Medical Association, Missouri Retailers Association and the Missouri Pharmacy Association. Many in the pharmacy industry say such laws will make it more difficult and expensive for those who are sick to get relief."

Donating Cancer Drugs

This is a helpful development for those who cannot afford cancer drugs.

Here is a link to Michigan's guidelines for its Cancer Drug Repository.

Continued Fight against Meth

The news lately is filled with communities and states trying to fight meth through tracking pseudophedrine purchases. It seems like it won't be long until a stricter federal law is enacted.

In August, Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon drafted federal legislation calling for a nationwide prescription mandate for pseudoephedrine; he said he planned to introduce it this year. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, which establishes policies and priorities for drug-control programs, is examining Oregon's law, though it hasn't taken a position on it.

A Bill Threatening Wisconsin's Pharmacists

Here is another example of "big box pharmacies" driving independent pharmacists out of business. Obviously the "big box pharmacies" receive more income from other sales and can afford to sell prescriptions for lower prices.

Newsletter Announcement

I know it has been delayed, but the Fall 2009 newsletter is almost finished. It is in the final editing stages and will be going to the printer later this week.

We will also be posting an electronic PDF on my website soon so you can read it there too.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

Georgia Pharmacy Audit Bill of Rights

Here are a couple links to the Georgia Pharmacy Audit Bill of Rights. I discuss the importance of this bill as an initial step in my latest newsletter.

Here is a link to a website with the text of the bill.

Here is a link to a savable or printable version of the bill.

A Fine Editorial

From the Hartford Courant, comes this editorial by Pharmacist Robert Bradley.

"Anyone who values having the option of going to a local independent pharmacy and dealing with a pharmacist who knows you personally and has the time to discuss your prescription needs should contact their state legislators and the governor's office and ask them to support small pharmacies by reconsidering this new state law on self-insurance."

And First off the Line is...Iowa

Iowa is making great strides in converting to electronic prescriptions.

"Iowa's largest integrated health care system and the nation's largest provider of electronic prescribing software today announced the launch of an initiative to convert a majority of the state's physicians from paper prescriptions- known to be the cause of costly medical errors- to electronic prescribing."

Liberty is not a Popularity Contest

This is a frightening precedent for civil liberties.

I have to agree with dissenting Judge Karen Nelson Moore, who wrote,

"I cannot think of any other circumstances where we have endorsed an invasion of a person's privacy with so few facts from which to draw an inference that the intrusion would likely uncover evidence of a crime."

U.S. District Judge Janet Neff wrote,

"There is no such things as a fair-weather Constitution, one which offers the harbor of its protections against reasonable search and seizure only in palatable contexts and only to worthy defendants."

Constitution liberties are not subject to popularity contests. Law enforcement has an innate tendency to expand its jurisdiction like a wildfire in the wind. Judges must be a firebreak to prevent harm and humans being consumed by that fire.

Judges must steel themselves against all-too-human, inner emotions and exercise mental discipline.

It is precisely where a defendant is unpopular or reviled that calm and levelheaded thinking in a judge is most required.

While this case involves the repugnance of child pornography, the law of this case will soon be applied to other searches for any alleged crimes. This holding is not limited to child pornography cases. Anything you ever searched is on a computer today.

Generic Replacements

The Alabama Attorney General has stepped in to prevent district attorney suits against CVS, Walgreen, Wal-Mart and Rite Aid. The attorneys allege that these pharmacies filled prescriptions with generic drugs, even when doctors did not specify the use of generics.

The district attorneys claim the Alabama AG is protecting big business and vow that voters will remember this in the next election.

"If that's the position he wants to take, good luck in the next election," said District Attorney Arthur Green of Jefferson County's Bessemer Division.

Follow H.R. 3663

You can follow the status of the DME Bill here.

Interesting Case

The Washington Post has an interesting story about World War II era war bonds. Several states have filed a suit against the Treasury Department seeking the repayment of war bonds. However, if the owners of relatives of these war bonds cannot be found, then the states stand to collect the money. This is interesting to the states in these difficult times.

The case should be an interesting Constitutional law issue.

Pro Bono Requirement

I see that the University of Michigan Law School is asking students to pledge to do at least 50 hours of pro bono work. Wayne State University and Cooley Law students volunteer their time also. I think the work done by the students will be an excellent asset to the community, especially in these difficult times.

DME Medicare Delay

For those concerned about the durable medical equipment accreditation Medicare deadline for pharmacies, a bill is awaiting signature by President Obama to push back the deadline until December 31, 2009. It has already been passed by the House and Senate.

"The Senate acted wisely to ensure seniors can continue purchasing essential medical supplies from their community pharmacies. Without it, thousands of independent community pharmacies would be forced to stop supplying diabetes testing supplies and other products to their patients." Bruce Roberts, National Community Pharmacists Association EVP and CEO

National Pharmacy Week

Remember that National Pharmacy Week is October 18-24 this year.

What will you do to celebrate your profession?