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New nonprofit represents specialty pharmacy
The specialty pharmaceutical market is currently fragmented with extreme variation in knowledge/education, patient care management, service, and outcomes.
The specialty pharmaceutical market is currently fragmented with extreme variation in knowledge/education, patient care management, service, and outcomes. This market fragmentation has fueled the formation of the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP).
“Specialty will become the standard for pharmacy,” Gary M. Cohen, BSPharm, RPh, interim executive director of the Specialty Pharmacy Certification Board and CEO, NASP, told Formulary.
NASP is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to represent all specialty pharmacy stakeholders. “NASP will provide an identity for all stakeholders in the specialty pharmacy industry and represent the best interests of the specialty pharmacy industry. Specialty pharmacy cuts across all distribution channels of pharmacy,” Michael A. Nameth, RPh, MBA, interim executive director, National Association of Specialty Pharmacy, told Formulary.
“Deeper knowledge and educational programs are required for the drugs, complex therapies, and diseases,” Nameth said. “High-touch services are required for the handling, administration, and care management of specialty patients and drugs.”
Only 3% to 5% of the population current use specialty drugs, and in some cases the drugs are only available through a limited or exclusive distribution network of pharmacies.
Specialty is the fastest growing segment in pharmacy today and the future, according to Nameth. “Payers are experiencing a 15% to 20% annual trend for specialty drugs and the management of specialty in the pharmacy and medical benefit will be a primary focus for payers going forward,” he said. “Specialty formularies will become an important tool for managing the rising costs.”
Additionally, 50% of the top 100 drugs and 8 of the top 10 will be specialty pharmaceuticals by 2016.
Among other things, NASP will provide accredited educational programming for all healthcare professionals servicing specialty patients, provide preparatory programs for the Certified Specialty Pharmacist credential, provide organizational and business-to-business education and training for specialty pharmacy stakeholders to improve their operations and compliance to accreditation and licensure standards.
Coalition promotes important acetaminophen dosing reminders
November 18th 2014It may come as a surprise that each year Americans catch approximately 1 billion colds, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as 20% get the flu. This cold and flu season, 7 in 10 patients will reach for an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine to treat their coughs, stuffy noses, and sniffles. It’s an important time of the year to remind patients to double check their medicine labels so they don’t double up on medicines containing acetaminophen.
Support consumer access to specialty medications through value-based insurance design
June 30th 2014The driving force behind consumer cost-sharing provisions for specialty medications is the acquisition cost and not clinical value. This appears to be true for almost all public and private health plans, says a new report from researchers at the University of Michigan Center for Value-Based Insurance Design (V-BID Center) and the National Pharmaceutical Council (NPC).
Management of antipsychotic medication polypharmacy
June 13th 2013Within our healthcare-driven society, the increase in the identification and diagnosis of mental illnesses has led to a proportional increase in the prescribing of psychotropic medications. The prevalence of mental illnesses and subsequent treatment approaches may employ monotherapy as first-line treatment, but in many cases the use of combination of therapy can occur, leading to polypharmacy.1 Polypharmacy can be defined in several ways but it generally recognized as the use of multiple medications by one patient and the most common definition is the concurrent use of five more medications. The presence of polyharmacy has the potential to contribute to non-compliance, drug-drug interactions, medication errors, adverse events, or poor quality of life.
Medical innovation improves outcomes
June 12th 2013I have been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer of the pancreas, a disease that’s long been considered not just incurable, but almost impossible to treat-a recalcitrant disease that some practitioners feel has given oncology a bad name. I was told my life would be measured in weeks.
