On April 30, 2015, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) made available a dataset that provides detailed information on medications that physicians and other healthcare providers prescribed under the Medicare...more
A new report released by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics shows that U.S. spending on pharmaceuticals increased in 2014 by 13.1 percent, reaching $373.9 billion. This is the highest increase since 2001 when drug...more
On March 6, 2015, FDA released a statement announcing its issuance of the first biosimilar license to Zarxio. In the same month, CMS issued a number of guidance documents addressing reimbursement for biosimilars under the...more
4/23/2015
/ Biosimilars ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part B ,
Medicare Part D ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drug Coverage ,
Prescription Drugs
The federal agency that oversees Medicare’s prescription drug program has alleged that a major U.S. insurance company misled beneficiaries about the pharmacies included in the company’s drug plan, and imposed a $1 million...more
The agency that oversees the 340B Drug Discount Program (340B program) is seeking review by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of a proposed rule that would use civil monetary penalties to enforce ceiling...more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced a new docket for public comments on the compounding of human drug products under sections 503A and 503B of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA). The FDA...more
Drug manufacturers may no longer be required to distribute prescribing information on paper—with limited exceptions—and instead may have to distribute that same information electronically. The FDA recently issued a proposed...more
On the heels of a loss in federal court last fall, the FDA recently announced a clarification of its policy concerning orphan drug exclusivity. In short, despite a court ruling requiring the FDA to grant orphan drug...more
A federal advisory panel has helped clear the path for what may be the first biosimilar biologic drug ever approved in the United States. Interestingly, generics of traditional drugs have been available in the U.S. for...more
In response to a decision to deny coverage of approximately 1,000 active ingredients that are widely used by compounding pharmacies to create topical treatments, three compounding pharmacies have filed a lawsuit against the...more
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has withdrawn a proposed omnibus rule, referred to as the “mega rule,” for the 340B Drug Pricing...more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reopening the comment period for two draft social media guidances in response to requests for additional time to allow interested persons to submit comments. Beginning September 29,...more
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it has published a list of licensed biological products and interchangeable biosimilars to be known as the Purple Book. The Purple Book is meant to be the...more
For years, many drug manufacturers have issued coupons to help cover some or all of the cost of copayments (commonly referred to as a “copay”) for prescription medications. While the Department of Health and Human Services...more
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently issued a Final Rule expanding the facilities that can collect unused prescription drugs to now include retail pharmacies, hospitals and pharmaceutical manufacturers, as...more
On July 21, 2014, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released an “Interpretive Rule” in response to a recent U.S. District Court decision that vacated the July 23, 2013, orphan drug rule on the grounds...more
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released five policy documents regarding compounded human drug products in connection with its continued implementation of the compounding provisions of the Drug Quality and...more
As previously discussed, the recent flurry of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) activity following passage of the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA) in November 2013, including the issuance of three draft guidance...more
On November 18, 2013, the Senate, by voice vote, approved the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA), intended to bolster the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) oversight of compounding pharmacies in light of last year's...more
Pharmacy compounding has been a very hot topic over the last 12 months. Whether it is news from Capitol Hill regarding possible legislation, regulation from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or action by a state board of...more