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What We’re Reading: Spending Bill Freeze; Cannabidiol as a Dietary Supplement; COVID-19 Misinformation Punishment
Intraparty disagreements over mifepristone cause pause in spending bill agreement until August recess ends; Officials urge the FDA to regulate cannabidiol as a dietary supplement; State medical boards tasked with protecting Americans frequently failed to stop doctors for COVID-19 misinformation.
Republican Disagreements Halt Spending Bill
Intraparty friction over the abortion pill mifepristone have delayed a plan for House votes on Friday and led GOP heads to push legislation funding the FDA until August recess ends, reported The Hill. The spending bill would also fund the Department of Agriculture and contains a provision to constrict restrictions surrounding access to mifepristone, which would nullify the agency’s decision to permit the drug to be dispensed through mail and retail pharmacies.
Officials Urge FDA to Regulate Cannabidiol
Officials and hemp advocates pressed the FDA to quickly regulate cannabidiol (CBD) products as dietary supplements at a House subcommittee hearing Thursday, according to Bloomberg Law. CBD products can’t be sold or regulated as dietary supplements yet because of CBD’s intrinsic risk profile and currently incomplete risk-management resources. Customer safeguards in the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act would apply to CBD products if they were regulated as dietary supplements, including adverse event reporting and possible child-proof packaging requirements.
Doctors Spreading COVID-19 Misinformation Rarely Punished
Doctors who endangered patients’ lives by pushing medical misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath have not encountered sufficient repercussions, according to a Washington Post analysis of disciplinary records from medical boards in every state, reported The Washington Post. These medical boards, assigned with protecting the American public, frequently failed to stop doctors who went against medical consensus and prescribed treatments not approved for COVID-19 or who misled patients about masks and vaccines, found the investigation. Presently, no organization monitors how many doctors have been punished for spreading COVID-19 misinformation.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued letters to 10 companies to warn them that certain drug patents were improperly listed; the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will begin testing ground beef for bird flu particles; rural Americans are more likely to die early from 1 of the 5 leading causes of death than those who live in urban areas.
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Navigating Health Policy in an Election Year: Insights From Dr Dennis Scanlon
April 2nd 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Dennis Scanlon, PhD, the editor in chief of The American Journal of Accountable Care®, about prior authorization, price transparency, the impact of health policy on the upcoming election, and more.
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Medicaid, Medicare Policy Changes Could Lead to More Than 25,000 Additional Deaths, Study Says
April 30th 2024Researchers also estimated that more than 700,000 Americans with diabetes could lose insurance coverage if these proposed retractions are put into place, with some new policies already in effect.
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Just as it is important for retail analysts to understand the choices their customers make and why they may choose not to purchase a specific item, so is it important for the specialty pharmacy industry to understand the actions of prescribers and how the often inefficient prior authorization process affects patient outcomes.
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