HB323 passes Senate! HB233 headed for a vote!

Check it out: Our priority bill, HB 323, was approved by the full Senate by a vote of … wait for it … 49 to 0! And then, while we were busy celebrating, we heard that our other priority bill, HB 233, passed the Rules Committee and is on to the full Senate for a vote Thursday!

We cannot thank Representative David Knight enough — the guy went above and beyond, spoke passionately and knowledgeably about our bills and why they are so critical, and was absolutely instrumental in helping them pass. He deserves a huge Georgia Pharmacist thank you (perhaps on Twitter or Facebook).

If you haven’t already, reach out to your state senators and ask them to support HB233 on Thursday’s floor vote. (If you don’t know who your state senator is, you can locate him or her at openstates.org.)

Wait wait, check this out:

We wouldn’t ask you to sit through an entire committee hearing, but you should check out the part where the HHS committee hears comments from PBMs and then independent pharmacists on our bills.

Here’s the link, but you want to start at about 23:50 in the video for all the discussion about our anti-steering bill, HB 233, or skip to 33:10 to hear various testimony about the bill, or heck, just cheer on pharmacist hero Jennifer Shannon, who appears at 39:45.

Stick to chewing gum, dad

It’s not just mom: Fathers who smoke during pregnancy* also increase children’s risk of heart defects according to a meta-analysis of 125 studies of 137,574 congenital heart disease cases.

* You know what we mean.

Measles at highest level in years

The CDC says there have been at least 314 cases of the measles in the U.S. since January 1, including three in Georgia. There were only 372 cases reported in all of 2018. (2014 was still the big outbreak year with 667 cases thanks in large part to unvaccinated Amish communities in Ohio.)

Remember: This is a deadly, preventable disease that was on the verge of being wiped out entirely in the country. And I think we all know who to blame.

And speaking of immunizations…

GPhA is offering “APhA’s Pharmacy-Based Immunization Delivery: A Certificate Program for Pharmacists” this coming Sunday, March 31 in Macon (on the campus of Mercer University) from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Earning that certificate is a great way to differentiate yourself and give your patients the best care. Check out GPhA.org/2019immunization and register fast.

Don’t have a Coke (but smile)

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association have both said, “Enough with the soft drinks already!” They put out a joint statement saying we need programs to cut kids’ consumption of soda and other sugary drinks — taxes on drinks (which do cut consumption), better education, limits on marketing, and more.

Excess consumption of added sugars, especially from sugary drinks, poses a grave health threat to children and adolescents, disproportionately affecting children of minority and low-income communities. Public policies, such as those detailed in this statement, are needed to decrease child and adolescent consumption of added sugars and improve health.

Fun fact: Our emphasis on “low fat” instead of “low sugar” comes in large part from a 1967 study paid for by the sugar industry that blamed fat for obesity. Fat was cut from foods and replaced with sugar. The rest is history.

ACA bullet points

The flu is still here

That is all.

Oh, fine. It’s not as severe as in some recent years, but it’s widespread — and this year saw two strains making the rounds. The CDC expects flu cases to remain high for at least several more weeks.

The long read: America’s drug-pricing problem

“Why drug prices are so difficult to bring down.” The short answer: Because there are so many competing interests: corporate shareholders, venture capitalists, elected officials, consumers, drug companies, insurers, universities receiving funding… you get the idea.