Allen visits Barney’s

U.S. Representative Rick Allen stopped by Barney’s Pharmacy in Augusta, where Ashley London (right) said they spoke in detail about DIR fees. We’ll keep saying it: Invite your legislators to your pharmacy. Tell them the issues you’re facing. Your voice matters!

Don’t overtreat diabetes

This quote says it all:

Researchers found that in the U.S., people with diabetes often receive much more medication than their hemoglobin A1C levels would require.

That overtreatment, those Mayo Clinic researchers found, “resulted in 4,774 hospital admissions and 4,804 emergency department visits in the span of 2 years.” That link is to the article; click here for the full study in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Time to dust off your tinfoil* hat

A small study in Canada found that a higher estimated fluoride consumption by pregnant women may lead to a lower IQ for her children. There are so many caveats to the study, but you probably won’t see those when the news circulates on Facebook.

* Tin foil has actually never been used (except in a handful of niche products). It’s just quicker to say than “aluminum** foil.”
** And worse for the Brits with their “aluminium foil.”

Satisfaction improvements

Takeaways from a new J.D. Power study about consumer satisfaction with their pharmacies.

  • Most customers interact in person, but those who do so electronically tend to be more satisfied.
  • The more topics you discuss — up to four — the more satisfied patients will be.
  • Only about 20% of patients use a pharmacy’s app, but those who do really like it.

Teens, HPV vaccine, and parental permission

We told you not too long ago how, without the HPV vaccine, Texas’s cervical cancer rate is higher than that of several third-world countries. On the heels of the ongoing measles epidemic caused by anti-vaxxers, other states don’t want to be embarrassed. Read “When parents say ‘no’ to HPV shots, teens have no choice. Some states are changing that.”

Speaking of measles

No, it hasn’t gone away. We’re at 1,203 cases reported so far this year.

The other drug spending

In case you’re curious, Americans spent $150 billion on illegal drugs in 2016, the majority on marijuana and heroin (which they bought in about equal dollar amounts); coke and meth markets were sizable but much smaller.

The Long Read: It takes an army

What happened when a toddler would die without a $2.1 million medication her family couldn’t afford? They recruited an army — Maisie’s Army.