February 12, 2010 - The drug industry's chief lobbyist and spokesman, former Louisiana Congressman Billy Tauzin, is resigning from his post as president and chief executive of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). "In January 2005, after a full year successfully battling a killer cancer, I was given a second chance at life, and appropriately chose to … [Read more...]
CMS Tweaks Medicare Part D for Patients and Plans
CMS is tweaking Medicare Part D for patients and plans. The government wants lower costs and improved access for beneficiaries of the large drug discount program.By Stuart Gordon As a new Medicare drug benefit year begins, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued final regulations that will directly affect such critical program aspects as patient costsharing, renewal policies, and eligibility for Medicare Advantage Special Needs plans which serve some of the nation’s sickest and poorest patients. In regulations … [Read more...]
Santa Clara Victory at Risk as Drug Makers Seek New Appeal
Santa Clara's legal challenge against 12 manufacturers continues to bounce between the courts. The drug makers filed another appeal to bar discovery of their proprietary pricing data.January 29, 2010 - The high-stakes 340B drug pricing case in California's Santa Clara County has taken several new turns. The dozen drug manufacturers the county sued in 2005 to recover alleged overcharges on 340B drugs have asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for a rehearing on a revised decision the appeals court issued Dec. 9. The revised opinion allowed the plaintiffs to … [Read more...]
340B Head Jimmy Mitchell Retiring This Year
After more than a decade at the Office of Pharmacy Affairs, Jimmy Mitchell is leaving his job as the 340B program's main caretaker. At 68, Mitchell plans to address health issues and to spend more time with his growing family.January 29, 2010 - Jimmy Mitchell is not leaving the post he's held at the Office of Pharmacy Affairs for the past decade easily. His agency and the rapidly growing drug discount program it oversees is, in this public health veteran's own words, "the most exciting place to work anywhere." But late this month, Mitchell announced in an e-mail addressed to "friends, colleagues … [Read more...]
Expansion of 340B in Balance as Health Reform Work Proceeds
The stakes are high for 340B providers and drug makers alike. Will the proposal to extend the 340B program to the inpatient hospital setting survive the latest industry lobbying blitz?January 19, 2010 - Democrats are working night and day to complete health care reform legislation. And with the lobbying frenzy in Washington reaching crescendo, a previously little-known federal program, 340B, suddenly appears to be on everybody's radar screen. Language that would extend the 340B drug discount program to also cover hospital inpatient medications was … [Read more...]
Abbott Deal May Herald New Refund Avenue for 340B Providers
January 14, 2010 - A multi-state settlement with Abbott Laboratories and Fournier, a French drug maker, covers 340B hospitals in two states.January 14, 2010 - At least a dozen 340B hospitals were included in a state-only settlement announced Jan. 7 with Abbott Laboratories and its French drug licensor, Fournier, signaling that there could be more such deals clinched in coming years. Until now, 340B providers have typically been included in global settlements brokered by the U.S. Department of Justice. … [Read more...]
Congress Edges Closer to Historic Expansion of 340B Program
Safety-net hospital pharmacies cheered when the Senate included a measure to extend the 340B discount to the hospital inpatient side in the health reform bill passed Dec. 24. But will the provision make it into Congress' final reform bill to be crafted over the next few weeks?January 7, 2010 - Across the nation this cold January, hospitals and other health care providers in the federal 340B program are holding their breath. Not since the 340B law went into effect nearly 18 years ago has Congress been so close to extending the program to hundreds of new providers, and to expanding its use for those who already participate. On December 24, on the … [Read more...]