Insurance commissioner indicted

Georgia Insurance Commissioner Jim Beck was indicted on charges of fraud and money laundering. More on this story coming soon.

E. coli outbreak easing

The 10-state (including Georgia) outbreak of E. coli from tainted ground beef is finally easing, according to the CDC. Instead of 18 reports a day, the agency says it’s only received 19 in the last month. At least 49 Georgians have been sickened.

Get your parchment*

Certificates don’t just look great on the wall. They tell your patients (and your employer) that you’re at the top of your game.

What we’re saying is Check out the certificate courses GPhA has coming up: point-of care testing, immunization, diabetes, and medication therapy management. Find info and dates conveniently at GPhA.org/certificates!

* Certificates not actually parchment. It’s a metaphor.

The word of the day is “Blepharospasm”

The FDA has approved Merz’s incobotulinumtoxinA — known to its friends as Xeomin — for treatment of involuntary blinking. Which of course raises the question, “Isn’t most blinking involuntary?”

Promacta recall

Novartis is recalling three lots of the liquid version of its anemia drug Promacta because it may have been contaminated with peanut flour.

This is the Promacta 12.5 mg for Oral Suspension; click the link above for details and the NDCs of the recalled lots.

The operative word is “occasional”

Pigging out every now and then won’t cause irreversible damage: “The body adapts and quickly bounces back from an occasional day of gluttony.”

The long read: UVA and UVB

“Why Is Sunscreen ‘Better’ in Europe?”

Bonus: Consumer Reports just released it’s annual sunscreen review.