Medtronic pump recall

Last week we told you that the FDA warned about Medtronic’s MiniMed insulin pumps being hackable. Now there’s been a full-blown recall of the 600-series MiniMed pumps… but for a completely different reason. Apparently the buttons can get stuck while flying because of changes in air pressure.

The recalls apply to Mini­Med 670G, 640G, 630G, and 620G
models, which have physical keypad buttons that can temporarily become
“unresponsive” when atmospheric pressure goes up or down quickly around
the pump, typically during takeoff and landing.

Coming soon: Practical skills workshop

If you want to hone your practical pharmacy skills — some folks call them “wet-lab skills” — there’s no better way than with GPhA’s Practical Skills Refresher Course.

It’s coming up on July 27 in Suwanee.

What is it? It’s a four-hour refresher on terminology, measurements, and procedures you’ll need for the Georgia pharmacy practical exam — and in the
day-to-day practice of pharmacy in your community.

Translation: If you’re going to be taking the exam, or you simply want to be at the top of your game, the Practical Skills Refresher Course is for you.

It’s a mere $159 for GPhA members pay just $159 ($289 for non-members, which includes a GPhA membership).

Click one of the links above (or right here) for more info and to register!

A “bucket” of kidney initiatives

The U.S. currently offers dialysis for all, regardless of age. But it’s usually done expensively in clinics, costing Medicare a lot more. That may change now, though, with what the Washington Post calls a “bucket of initiatives” — initiatives that are…

…designed to move dialysis patients away from commercial centers and into homes, improve early screening for kidney disease and double the number of kidney transplants performed in the United States.

Ankles and opioids

A sprained ankle can hurt, but so can a lot of things. The difference: A lot of docs are prescribing opioids for those sprains. Guess what? “8.4 percent of these individuals were still filling a prescription for an opioid three months after the original diagnosis.”

Three months? That’s one heck of a sprain. Even worse, opioids aren’t recommended for ankle sprains in the first place.

Rebate ban plan scrapped

Remember the big plan the Trump administration had to eliminate PBM rebates? An HHS rule banned them for Medicare and Medicaid. Well… scratch that. The administration changed its mind and has rescinded that rule.

Then again…

“Rebates’ days are numbered,” HHS secretary Alex Azar said. It’s just a matter of figuring a way to cut them without raising Medicare premiums.

Johnny, tell them what it’s like

How do you get parents to give their kids the flu shot? How about a handout that shows them what having the flu is like? (Spoiler: Yes, it works. It’s not a huge difference, but when you’re trying to establish herd immunity, every percent helps.)

Welcome to the jungle

How can you prepare health professionals for the expanding crisis in rural America*? Send them deep into the Amazon rainforest where medical facilities are a bit more primitive.

* It gets worse here every day

ICYMI

Sugary drinks may be linked to cancer, according to a new French study. Is it a direct correlation, or is because obesity raises cancer risk? That’s not answered yet.

The results showed that a 100 millilitre (ml) a day increase in consumption of sugary drinks was linked to an 18% increased risk of overall cancer and a 22% increased risk of breast cancer.