Latest Drugs Headlines
All the headlines from our Drugs Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Drug Companies Seek Delay in Oklahoma Opioid Trial
Mar 7 2019 // Pharmaceutical companies have asked for a 100-day postponement of an Oklahoma trial accusing them of fraudulently marketing drugs that have fueled the nation’s opioid crisis. Several states have filed lawsuits...
Jurors Told How Insys Chief Used Competitors’ Data to Drive Own Opioid Sales
Mar 7 2019 // Insys Therapeutics Inc. founder John Kapoor didn’t cut corners when it came to collecting intelligence on opioid sales, using the data to beat down his employees and to spur doctors to prescribe more of his highly...
San Antonio Area Drug Company Sales Rep Pleads Guilty in $8M Fraud Scheme
Mar 5 2019 // A former pharmaceutical representative has pleaded guilty in Texas to a role in an $8 million health care fraud scheme that netted her over $1 million, according to U.S. Attorney John Bash and FBI Special Agent in Charge...
With Opioid Litigation Mounting, Purdue Pharma Exploring Bankruptcy: Reuters
Mar 4 2019 // OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP is exploring filing for bankruptcy to address potentially significant liabilities from thousands of lawsuits alleging the drug manufacturer contributed to the deadly opioid crisis sweeping...
NSAIDs Overtake Opioids as Top Workers’ Comp Drug in California
Mar 4 2019 // Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, or NSAIDs, have supplanted opioids as the most common therapeutic drug group prescribed to injured workers in California, according to a new California Workers’ Compensation...
Lawmakers Cite Own Experiences in Grilling Drug Executives on Prices
Mar 1 2019 // Channeling the ire of constituents and drawing from personal experience, senators chastised drug company executives Tuesday over the high cost of prescription medications, while the CEOs warned that government price...
How High-Pressure Insys Prescription Call Center Lied to Insurers to Sell Opioids
Feb 26 2019 // The goal for Insys Therapeutics Inc.’s call center in Phoenix was simple: persuade insurers to authorize at least 70 prescriptions a week of its expensive opioid spray. Workers would get bonuses for surpassing the...
North Dakota House OKs Medical Marijuana Law Changes
Feb 20 2019 // The North Dakota House approved legislation that would expand the list of medical conditions for which residents can use medical marijuana, add health care professionals who can certify patients for the drug and increase...
NSAIDs Overtake Opioids as Top Workers’ Comp Drug in California
Feb 15 2019 // Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, or NSAIDs, have supplanted opioids as the most common therapeutic drug group prescribed to injured workers in California, according to a new California Workers’ Compensation...
Kentucky Governor Voices Support for Medical Marijuana as Legislature Weighs Bill
Feb 15 2019 // Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin spoke about his support for legalizing medical marijuana in highly personal terms on Tuesday, telling a community forum that his teenage nephew died after fighting “a very hard battle with...
Ohio Hospital Facing Excessive Dosage Lawsuits Tightens Drug Access, Rules
Feb 14 2019 // The Ohio hospital system that found a doctor ordered possibly fatal doses of powerful painkillers for dozens of patients has tightened policies and drug access to address problems in pharmaceutical services that...
Bills Would Improve Access to Medical Marijuana in North Dakota
Feb 11 2019 // As North Dakota’s Health Department enters the final stages of implementing a statewide distribution system for medical marijuana, state lawmakers are considering proposals that would make it easier for patients to...
Microsoft Targets Healthcare with Medical Records in the Cloud, Bots and More
Feb 7 2019 // Microsoft Corp. is releasing a service to help health-care companies move vast amounts of patient data to its cloud and connect with other related systems in a bid to offer clinicians, individuals and researchers a more...
Bipartisan Bill Would Boost Generic Drugs to Lower Prices
Feb 6 2019 // A bipartisan group of U.S. senators re-introduced a bill on Tuesday aimed at helping generic drug companies bring out a cheaper version of pharmaceuticals. Makers of branded drugs have long been accused of refusing to...
Trump Plan to Curb Drug Prices Targets Rebates to Pharmacy Benefit Managers
Feb 1 2019 // The Trump administration proposed ending a complex system of drug rebates that influence tens of billions of dollars in U.S. pharmaceutical spending, a move that could upend the relationship between drugmakers and pharmacy...
Differences in Opioid Dispensing Rates
Jan 21 2019 // Injured workers in mining and construction, those in rural counties or those who suffer fractures, carpal tunnel and neurologic spine pain are among those more likely to receive prescriptions for opioids than workers in...
Ohio Hospital: Doc Gave Excessive Pain Meds to Near-Death Patients, Suit Filed
Jan 18 2019 // An intensive care doctor ordered “significantly excessive and potentially fatal” doses of pain medicine for at least 27 near-death patients in the past few years after families asked that lifesaving measures be...
Different Rates of Opioid Prescriptions Linked to Worker, Employer, Injury Traits
Jan 11 2019 // Injured workers in mining and construction, those in rural counties or those who suffer fractures, carpal tunnel and neurologic spine pain are among those more likely to receive prescriptions for opioids than workers in...
Eli Lilly Posts Drug Price on Website But Not in TV Ads
Jan 11 2019 // Drugmaker Eli Lilly has started posting price information online for drugs advertised on TV. On Jan. 8, the company began running TV ads for a popular diabetes drug that don’t give the price but direct viewers to the...
Drug Advertising Drives $30 Billion Medical Industry Marketing Machine
Jan 11 2019 // Ads for prescription drugs appeared 5 million times in just one year, capping a recent surge in U.S. medical marketing, a new analysis found. The advertisements for various medicines showed up on TV, newspapers, online...
