State senators from Nevada and California are calling on Craigslist to remove ads from its site that facilitate illegal distribution and diversion of narcotics, reports the  LA Times. In a letter (PDF) to Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster, California Senator Ted Lieu wrote, “In the interest of public safety, and to help stop needless deaths from overdoses, please consider this […]

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The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy® (NABP®) recently amended the Model State Pharmacy Act and Model Rules of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (Model Act) in its effort to assist the boards of pharmacy as they work to protect the public health. The Model Act was revised to replace technology-specific language with […]

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At the 2013 International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) World Congress hosted in Dublin, Ireland, NABP presented information on online pharmacy safety and rogue online drug sellers to delegates at a session dedicated to online health. NABP shared its finding with delegates that almost 97% of more than 10,000 Internet Web sites selling drug products and reviewed […]

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Following a controversial conditional veto by Governor Chris Christie, New Jersey has become one of several states that allow children with issues like seizures, autism, and cancer, legal access to an edible form of medical marijuana. The New Jersey program requires parents of qualifying children to get approval from two doctors – a pediatrician and […]

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The state of Georgia became the second-to-last state to implement a prescription monitoring program (PMP), which allows pharmacists and physicians to submit and check patient controlled substance prescription medication history in order to help them make the most appropriate treatment decisions. The Augusta Chronicle reports that nearly 2,000 pharmacists and prescribers have already signed up […]

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In a July 2013 report, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that “Congress should consider clarifying FDA’s authority to oversee certain entities that compound drugs.” GAO indicates that there is a lack of consensus on when compounding becomes manufacturing and specifically that “there was not agreement on whether compounding pharmacies that are engaged […]

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Alabama Governor Robert Bentley has signed into law three bills aimed to reverse the state’s growing prescription drug abuse rate. In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified Alabama among the top 20 states in number of drug overdose deaths. In response to that report and other indicators, laws addressing the state’s prescription […]

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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has become aware of cases in which veterinarians are told, incorrectly, that they must provide a National Provider Identifier (NPI) number for prescriptions they have written to be dispensed. The agency has issued a clarification, stressing that veterinarians do not meet the regulatory definition of “health care provider,” […]

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A bill calling for a 30-member commission to coordinate law enforcement and health agency efforts to combat prescription drug abuse was introduced to the United States Senate. Under the law, the commission would be composed of representatives from Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Office of National Drug Control Policy […]

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A United States House of Representatives subcommittee held a hearing (PDF) July 16, 2013, to examine various bills aimed to implement new frameworks for the regulation of compounding. The Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health, convened to hear expert testimony from US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other experts in health care […]

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