Healthcare laws in the legislature

While our own Greg Reybold is the best place to keep up with pharmacy-related bills in the legislature, Georgia Health News has a great piece covering the major healthcare bills being considered.

• Medicaid waivers that will finally allow the state to expand coverage to more low-income people
• Hospital certificate-of-need reform, which involves major (and popular) tax credits, and which has urban and rural hospitals at odds
• And Governor Kemp’s proposal to spend $8.4 million on mental health services for students that he says will make schools safer

Tick tick tick — awards nominations close tomorrow!

Do you know a Georgia pharmacy professional who deserves recognition for his or her work?

Perhaps an amazing young pharmacist, an outstanding innovator, or someone who is a paragon of pharmacy excellence?

Or maybe someone who has spent a lifetime in service of others and the profession of pharmacy?

Whomever it is, we need you to tell us! It’s time to nominate people for the 2019 Georgia Pharmacy Awards. And the deadline is this Friday, February 15.

• Distinguished Young Pharmacist Award: Recognizing an individual who, although having been in the profession for less than a decade, has demonstrated a dedication to Georgia pharmacists and patients.
• The Excellence in Innovation Award for Pharmacy Practice: This award acknowledges a pharmacist who has found new and better ways to improve the care of his or her patients — innovative and impressive solutions, techniques, or business practices.
• The Larry L. Braden Meritorious Service Award: The highest honor GPhA bestows on a pharmacist, this award recognizes the Georgia pharmacist who, over his or her career, has made extraordinary, invaluable contributions not only to GPhA, but to the practice of pharmacy in the state of Georgia.
• The Bowl of Hygeia: Among the most prestigious awards in pharmacy, the Bowl of Hygeia is presented annually by GPhA and all state pharmacy associations to one pharmacist in each state with an outstanding record of service not only to the pharmacy profession, but to the community as well.

These are awards created by your association, but its your input — your nominations — that give them meaning. And it starts with nominations.

Visit our awards page at GPhA.org/awards for more information on award criteria and to make your nominations. Deadline for submissions is February 15, 2019.

Georgia hospitals ranked among the best

Piedmont Fayette Hospital in Fayetteville was named one of the top one percent (!) of hospitals in America by HealthGrades — that places it as one of the 50 best hospitals in the country.

Emory University Hospital and Emory University Hospital Midtown, both in Atlanta, were named to the top two percent, while Emory Saint Joseph’s (Atlanta), Piedmont Hospital (Atlanta), Piedmont Newnan Hospital (Newnan) and Wellstar Kennestone Hospital (Marietta) all made the top five percent.

Mind if we check out your supplements?

The FDA is planning to start taking a harder look at dietary supplements — and that’s not just sending out occasional warning letters. Besides stronger enforcement of “don’t put secret prescription meds into products” rules, it’s considering tighter restrictions and clearer disclosures.

FDA could approve ketamine-ish drug

An FDA committee has endoresed full approval of esketamine, which, you can tell from the name, is based on everyone’s favorite animal tranquilizer (and potential depression treatment), ketamine.

If it gets FDA approval, esketamine “is expected to be used in combination with antidepressants, but the latter can take a month or two to take effect. Esketamine, on the other hand, might have an effect within hours or days.”

HHS wants to use step therapy for Part B

Although he was “disturbed to hear” of commercial-insurance patients having to use step therapy when they switch providers, when it comes to Medicare Part B plans, HHS Secretary Alex Azar says he supports step therapy and prior authorization, claiming it keeps costs down.