Pharmacy Times

JANUARY 20, 2023

Carina Dolan, PharmD, BCOP, senior director for Clinical Oncology and Pharmaceutical Outcomes at Vizient Inc, discusses the highlights and big picture moving forward for hospitals and health-system pharmacies.

Hospitals 52

Hospitals 52

Drug Channels

OCTOBER 19, 2021

Hospitals and health systems are rapidly expanding their internal specialty pharmacies—and they’re using questionable tactics to boost revenues and profits. Nearly two-thirds of the larger health system specialty pharmacies operate as the exclusive pharmacy within self-insured health systems’ networks.

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Specialty Pharmacies Hospitals Drug Pricing 69

STAT

JANUARY 2, 2024

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration seemed to be giving pharmacies a win when they forced pharmacy benefit managers to be more up-front about the behind-the-scenes fees they charge. But now pharmacies are afraid the transition to the new system on Jan. 1 will lead to a cash flow crunch.

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STAT

NOVEMBER 21, 2023

Pharmacies could be called the most “rock solid” entity in our health care system. But in recent months, it has become clear that pharmacists, and pharmacies, are fed up with working conditions. Read the rest…

Vaccines 352

Vaccines 352

STAT

DECEMBER 5, 2023

CVS Health is promising to simplify how its pharmacies get paid for drugs. The country’s biggest pharmacy chain said it’s switching to a system where pharmacy benefit managers, employers, and other insurers pay for drugs based on the cost of the drug plus a set markup and dispensing fee.

Drug Pricing 363

Drug Pricing 363

Pharmacy Times

JULY 22, 2022

The evolving landscape of specialty pharmacy growth represents the impact it may have on the operations of the health-system moving forward.

Specialty Pharmacies 52

Specialty Pharmacies 52

STAT

MARCH 8, 2024

Change Healthcare’s parent company said it’ll have its electronic payment function up and running by late next week after a February cyberattack took many of its systems offline. UnitedHealth Group said clients will be able to reconnect to Change’s electronic payment system on March 15.

Hospitals 280

Hospitals 280

STAT

JANUARY 25, 2024

If it seems like there’s a CVS pharmacy on every other block, that’s because the company operates 9,000 stores nationwide, including nearly 500 across Massachusetts. But CVS has become much more than a pharmacy colossus. And then there’s the ubiquitous presence of its stores. The company, based in Woonsocket, R.I.,

Drug Pricing 316

Drug Pricing 316

Pharmacy Times

DECEMBER 29, 2023

From newsworthy moments to groundbreaking research, these were the most-read health systems-related articles on Pharmacy Times in 2023.

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STAT

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

Hospitals, pharmacies, and other health care providers are getting stuck in an insurance processing logjam after UnitedHealth Group disclosed a cyberattack within a recently acquired subsidiary that serves as a central hub for payments across the industry. The company took down its Change Healthcare payment systems, which remain out.

Hospitals 363

Hospitals 363

STAT

JULY 26, 2023

They’re focused this summer on reining in pharmacy middlemen to make the system fairer — but none of their many proposals will actually tackle the core dynamic that has incentivized higher drug prices. Pharmacy benefit managers are companies employed by insurers to negotiate lower drug costs with pharmaceutical companies.

Drug Pricing 240

Drug Pricing Packaging Pharmaceutical Companies Pharmaceutical Companies 240

The Pharmacist

MARCH 25, 2024

An IT functionality that will enable pharmacists to automatically update GP records with Pharmacy First consultations will be rolled out in a ‘phased’ manner from this week. But the speed of the roll-out will largely depend on the readiness of pharmacy IT systems, one GP system provider has suggested.

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STAT

NOVEMBER 24, 2023

When the health system refused, Emanate said in its complaint, Optum cut off contracts and steered patients to other providers. UnitedHealth’s Optum subsidiary, which includes its provider arm, its pharmacy benefit manager, and its data and technology arm, has been especially focused on acquiring provider practices in recent years.

Hospitals 362

Hospitals 362

Pharmacy Times

APRIL 29, 2024

HSSPs improve medication adherence and reduce total health care costs by directly managing medications for complex chronic conditions like cancer, diabetes, COPD and CHF.

Specialty Pharmacies 52

Specialty Pharmacies Diabetes 52

STAT

JUNE 21, 2023

Pharmacy benefit managers are intermediaries that are supposed to negotiate lower drug costs. But does the system work for patients? Editor’s note: A livestream of the event will be embedded below at 1 p.m. And how can we fix it when it doesn’t? Read the rest…

Drug Pricing 242

Drug Pricing 242

STAT

JULY 13, 2023

WASHINGTON — A key Senate health care panel has developed a plan to tackle reforms to middlemen in the pharmacy drug payment system, according to bill text obtained by STAT. The draft legislation, authored by Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)

Drug Pricing 243

Drug Pricing 243

Drug Channels

AUGUST 31, 2020

Below, I provide my overview of how our crazy drug channel system enables GoodRx’s good fortune. But you will also wonder whether this business perpetuates a broken pharmacy drug pricing model. You will admire the GoodRx management team’s business savvy in building a company that lowers out-of-pocket costs for consumers.

Drug Pricing 52

Drug Pricing 52

STAT

MAY 17, 2023

The Federal Trade Commission is widening its probe into pharmacy benefit managers and their impact on drug pricing by looking into a pair of group purchasing organizations that are owned by these industry middlemen, but are not well understood outside the industry.

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Drug Pricing Documentation 250

Pharmacy Times

DECEMBER 7, 2023

Tom Kraus, JD discusses current federal regulatory and legislative issues that impact the practice of health-system pharmacy.

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STAT

AUGUST 17, 2023

Blue Shield of California, a health insurance company that covers almost 5 million people, is restructuring how it will pay for prescription drugs by dividing the work up among five different vendors — two of which include Amazon and Mark Cuban’s pharmacy company.

Drug Pricing 241

Drug Pricing Health Insurance Companies 241

Drug Channels

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Below, I provide my overview of how our crazy drug channel system enables GoodRx’s good fortune. But you will also wonder whether this business perpetuates a broken pharmacy drug pricing model. You will admire the GoodRx management team’s business savvy in building a company that lowers out-of-pocket costs for consumers.

Drug Pricing 52

Drug Pricing 52

STAT

JULY 20, 2023

Federal Trade Commission is reversing years of prior advocacy in support of pharmacy benefit managers amid increased scrutiny of the controversial role these companies play in the U.S. Pharmacy benefit managers, linchpins in the pharmaceutical pricing system, are under a microscope for allegedly driving up consumer costs.

Mail-Order Pharmacies 185

Mail-Order Pharmacies 185

STAT

AUGUST 11, 2023

Nearly every hospital pharmacy across the U.S. At the same time, more pharmacists are changing their purchasing practices, with nine out of 10 pivoting toward different vial sizes or concentrations, while 59% percent are buying more from compounding pharmacies. is experiencing shortages of prescription drugs.

Hospitals 246

Hospitals Compounding Pharmacies Dosage Chemotherapy 246

Pharmacy Is Right For Me

DECEMBER 7, 2022

Have you considered pharmacy? Pharmacy offers countless career options , with pharmacists practicing in pharmacies, health systems, labs, government agencies, corporations, and so much more! Check out our latest video and find out if pharmacy is right for you! The post Is Pharmacy Right For You?

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The Pharmacist

MAY 3, 2024

The State of Primary Care Survey asks how the changes to the NHS — the launch of primary care networks (PCNs) in 2019 and the shift to integrated care systems (ICSs) in 2022 […] The post Have your say on PCN pharmacy and you could win a £200 voucher appeared first on The Pharmacist.

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The Pharmacist

DECEMBER 13, 2023

The plan, published today by NHS England (NHSE), designates community pharmacy as a ‘core’ setting for adult seasonal vaccinations, with local systems expected to ‘enable community pharmacy to play a greater role in seasonal vaccination […] The post NHSE plans ‘greater role’ for pharmacies in delivering seasonal jabs appeared first on The Pharmacist. (..)

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Community Pharmacies Vaccines 121

The Pharmacist

MARCH 14, 2024

The community pharmacy negotiator has condemned the ‘significant problems’ with IT systems it said the sector has faced this week.

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Community Pharmacies 62

Pharmacy Times

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

This comprehensive approach is what all stakeholders, especially patients and families, need and deserve from their health care system.

Specialty Pharmacies 26

Specialty Pharmacies 26

The Pharmacist

APRIL 15, 2024

The NHS national booking system for spring Covid-19 vaccination bookings via pharmacies in England is now open. The […] The post NHS opens national booking system for spring Covid-19 vaccinations appeared first on The Pharmacist. Those eligible to book appointments are able to do so for next week.

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Vaccines 86

Digital Pharmacist

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Today we will explore what you need to know about the shift away from copper lines and how to minimize any potential interruptions in your pharmacy. How Will the Elimination of Copper Line Service Impact Pharmacies? How Can Vow Assist with This Transition?

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Communication Pharmacy Management 92

Pharmacy Times

DECEMBER 6, 2023

Carly Giavatto, PharmD, discusses the CPS conducted study that highlights a first of its kind linkage to care initiative performed by health systems specialty pharmacists.

Specialty Pharmacies 49

Specialty Pharmacies 49

The Pharmacist

MAY 2, 2024

Community pharmacy closures and pressures on the sector could impact on patient care and access to medicines, speakers at a Westminster Health Forum have warned.

Community Pharmacies 72

Community Pharmacies 72

Proxsys Rx

MAY 16, 2024

When that happens, as Pharmacy Times noted in a Health Systems Analysis , “The costs of medications paid by these entities, along with the potential costs associated with drug preparation, administration, and/or dispensing of the medications, often exceed reimbursement.” That means a 340B hospital paying a 12.5%

Specialty Pharmacies 52

Specialty Pharmacies Hospitals Prescription Filling 52

STAT

MAY 31, 2023

As Congress considers wide-ranging reforms to pharmacy benefit managers, a top executive at CVS Health, which owns one of the largest PBMs in the country, said the company would find ways to maintain its level of profit if those reforms to things like drug rebates went into effect. Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

Drug Pricing 246

Drug Pricing 246

Pharmacy Times

DECEMBER 6, 2022

Increasing workplace diversity, addressing health disparities, and overcoming disruptions from COVID-19 are considered top goals among pharmacy stakeholders.

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National Association of Boards of Pharmacy

JANUARY 31, 2024

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in digital prescription systems, which can potentially recommend treatment solutions and detect medication errors, may come to fruition soon as well. In some cases, e-prescriptions can bypass the entire order entry process, eliminating a step in dispensing where human errors are commonly introduced.

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Prescription Filling Controlled Substances 85

STAT

MARCH 29, 2024

” But Amazon Pharmacy reported the drug was in short supply and multiple pharmacists confirmed that some or all of the doses of the injectable drug are on back order. And Cardinal Health, a major wholesaler, was also reporting a manufacturer back order for some doses and limiting shipments to pharmacies.

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