The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and its advisors recommended Tuesday that everyone age 6 months and older receive at least one dose of updated COVID-19 vaccines. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the updated vaccines developed by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech on Monday. Updated COVID-19 vaccines are expected to be available at major pharmacies later this week. In the coming months, the guidelines are expected to include vaccines by Novavax and any others authorized by FDA; the Novavax vaccine may serve as a good alternative for individuals who cannot receive mRNA vaccines like those made by Moderna and Pfizer. According to information submitted to CDC's advisory panel, Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax intend to charge $120 to $130 per dose [...]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved for emergency use updated COVID-19 vaccines formulated to more closely target currently circulating variants and to provide better protection against serious consequences of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death. The actions relate to updated mRNA vaccines for 2023-2024 manufactured by ModernaTX Inc. and Pfizer Inc. These vaccines have been updated to include a monovalent (single) component that corresponds to the Omicron variant XBB.1.5. The updated mRNA vaccines are each approved for individuals 12 years of age and older and are authorized under emergency use for individuals 6 months through 11 years of age. As part of today’s actions, the bivalent Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines are no longer authorized for use in the [...]

More Michigan pharmacies may soon carry Narcan, which can reverse opioid overdoses, following federal action to increase access to the drug earlier this year. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in March approved Narcan (naloxone) for over-the-counter use. Emergent BioSolutions, which manufactures Narcan, has already shipped thousands of kits, which are expected to hit the shelves soon. Narcan is only effective on overdoses caused by opioids such as oxycodone (OxyContin), hydrocodone (Vicodin), morphine, codeine and synthetic fentanyl. Narcan usually takes 2 minutes to 3 minutes to work. Each dose contains 4 milligrams of the medicine, but multiple doses may be needed.  The effects can last for as little as 20 minutes or up to two hours. Read More

LANSING – The Michigan Pharmacists Association (MPA) will host the 13th annual Medication Disposal Event on the south lawn of the Michigan Capitol Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023. The general public is encouraged to drop off their unused, unwanted or expired medications from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the medication disposal tent. Curbside drop-off will also be available on South Capitol Avenue between Michigan Avenue and Allegan Street. Held in conjunction with the MPA’s annual Pharmacy Day at the Capitol, this event allows participants to safely and responsibly dispose of medications, including controlled substances and narcotics. Those attending the event will have the opportunity to learn more about what the state and MPA are doing to curb the opioid epidemic, [...]

Four national pharmacy organizations blasted an Aug. 15 decision by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals allowing pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to escape certain state regulations in Oklahoma by hiding behind the alleged preemption of that law by federal ERISA and Medicare Part D laws. The National Community Pharmacists Association, the American Pharmacists Association, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, American Pharmacies and the Oklahoma Pharmacists Association jointly signed on as amici to defend Oklahoma’s 2019 law regulating PBMs. The PBM lobby, the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, challenged the law in federal court. In 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma largely upheld the law. PCMA appealed only four of the 13 originally challenged provisions. [...]