prescription drugs

Nosse Wants Law to Track Biosimilar Drugs Without Restricting Access

An ongoing controversy over generic equivalents to complex biological drugs is resurfacing in the 2016 session, as patient advocacy groups and drug companies try again to require pharmacists to take extra steps to notify prescribers of a substitution when they dispense something other than a brand-name biological drug.

Rep. Rob Nosse, D-Portland, is bringing back a bill that requires pharmacists to give extra notification to medication prescribers when the pharmacist dispenses a cheaper, biosimilar equivalent to a brand-name biological drug.

By: 
Chris Gray

Oregon Physicians Prescribed More Than $1 Billion in Drugs in 2013

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The CMS data revealed that 15,000 physicians prescribed drugs to 13,000 Medicare beneficiaries while Drs. Mary O’Hearn, Kiren Kresa-Reahl, Richard Kimani and Harry Krulewitch led the list. This chart below shows all 15,000 physicians and their drug costs.

In an unprecedented decision, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services has published comprehensive data showing which physicians and other healthcare providers prescribed the highest number of drugs – by cost, claim and their type – to Medicare beneficiaries.1

By: 
Kathryn Thomsen and Jen Kruse

Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Genentech Pour Money into State Elections

Pharmaceutical companies spent $491,000 to influence elections and legislation in the Oregon capitol, as the Legislature tailored certain bills to fit their interests.

September 4, 2013 -- Nineteen drug companies have spent a combined half a million dollars since 2011 trying to influence elections and legislation, led by Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Genentech.

Pfizer, known for Viagra, Zoloft and Xanax, is the world’s largest drug company by revenue, and Eli Lilly is the world’s largest manufacturer of psychiatric medications, such as Prozac.

By: 
Christopher David Gray

Small Pharmacies Getting Squeeze from Goliath PBMs

A bipartisan bill introduced by Rep. Jules Bailey and Rep. Greg Smith would regulate pharmacy benefit managers, which local pharmacists say are driving them out of business

 

March 27, 2013 — Central Drugs Pharmacy has been open for 110 years in downtown Portland, and it specializes in dispensing drugs for those who suffer from HIV.

By: 
Christopher David Gray

Making Sense Out of Drug Prices

When the author tried to find out why the cost of her blood pressure medication had gone up by 150%, she was left fumbling for an answer

OPINION – DECEMBER 18, 2012 -- I take a generic drug, a little yellow pill that’s been produced for decades, to control blood pressure. I started taking it long before the day I turned 65 that happened to coincide with the beginnings of the great recession that effectively reduced the value of our savings and our house.

By: 
Bertha D. Cooper

Member Insists OEBB Overpays for Prescription Drugs

Its policy of mandating that only mail order companies can provide a 90-day supply of drugs is increasing insurance costs, she says

October 30, 2012 -- Tamara Weaver questions why the Oregon Educators Benefit Board (OEBB) is paying more for prescription drugs through its mail order company than at Costco, her local retail pharmacy. OEBB is responsible for selecting the health plans for the majority of Oregon’s public school teachers, community colleges and state universities.

By: 
Joanne Scharer

Physicians Focus on Curbing Opioid Abuse, Accidental Deaths

Oregon's high rate of prescription abuse and reports of accidental overdoses nationwide have spurred conferences and discussion groups to change treatment protocols

October 8, 2012 -- In the 1990s, prescribing opioid painkillers for any patients besides those in the last stages of a terminal illness was frowned upon and could even result in censure, said Betsy Boyd-Flynn, deputy executive vice president of the Oregon Medical Association.

By: 
Christen McCurdy

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