FDA looks to regulate CBD

Could the FDA be ready to regulate CBD? Well, it’s not that simple, but it seems the agency will start the process soon, with at least recommendations on how to regulate the huge and wildly confusing market of legal cannabis products. For example…

The agency wants to know if CBD can be safely eaten every day for a long period or during pregnancy amid concerns about future fertility, Patrick Cournoyer, who heads the FDA office developing the agency’s cannabis strategy, [said].

Don’t forget to nominate someone!

If you know someone who’s a bit extraordinary — at least in the field of pharmacy — it’s your sacred duty to nominate her, him, it, or them for a 2023 GPhA award.

The deadline is less than a month away: February 1. So it’s time to start choosing the best of the best in Georgia pharmacy, with awards presented in style at the 2023 Georgia Pharmacy Convention in (on?) Amelia Island, Fla.

What awards, you ask? The details are at GPhA.org/awards, but here’s the list:

• The Bowl of Hygeia: You know it or you don’t — it’s among the most prestigious awards in pharmacy and the only one with a Wikipedia page
• Larry L. Braden Meritorious Service Award: GPhA’s highest honour — so high, we spell it with a u
• Distinguished Young Pharmacist Award (“Young” meaning in the profession for less than a decade)
• Excellence in Innovation
• Faculty Member of the Year
• Jim Bartling Student Pharmacist of the Year*
• Pharmacy Technician of the Year

Yes, these are GPhA awards, but nominations come from you, the members. That’s what gives them meaning. And it starts now.

Visit our awards page at GPhA.org/awards for more information on award criteria, and to make your nominations. The deadline for submissions is February 1, 2023.

What patients need

You know how you have to explain deductibles to some folks? That’s the tip of the iceberg when it comes to being confused or overwhelmed by the healthcare system.

As one patient advocate argues in Pharmacy Times, pharmacies and pharmacists would do well (and so would their patients) to make that help a bit more formal — “establishing an official patient navigation program within the pharmacy.”

[A] staggering 84% of pharmacists and pharmacy staff help with benefits information within a given week. This goes well beyond simply running insurance and includes helping patients navigate co-pay accumulators, understand out-of-pocket resources, and find assistance.

The latest long-Covid numbers

The latest long-Covid study finds that — based on a survey of more than 3,000 people in the US — “7.3% of the participants reported having long COVID symptoms, which translates to close to 19 million US adults.”

Women and the unvaccinated had it more often; seniors and Black, Hispanic, and people of Asian/Pacific Islanders ancestry had it less often.

The scary part, though, is that it’s lasted more than six months for more than half of people, and more than a year for almost 30%. Yikes.

A different Alzheimer’s target

When it comes to Alzheimer’s, the beta-amyloid proteins — the plaques, actually — are what get the attention. But University of Washington researchers say that we need to start paying more attention to tau proteins.

Why? Because, as one gerontologist put it, “The amyloid plaques start the disease cascade, so it makes sense to try to eliminate them, but it’s tau that kills the cells.” In effect, it’s fighting the disease a little further down the progression chain — which makes sense, considering how little progress has been made trying to attack the beta-amyloid plaques.

“If we were to target any one thing in Alzheimer’s disease, we probably should be targeting tau. It’s the most closely tied to the decline in cognitive dysfunction. You want to get rid of amyloid but what you really want is preservation of cognition. That requires targeting tau.”