NCPA: “It’s payback time”

NCPA not only applauded but loudly applauded a class-action lawsuit filed against CVS’s Caremark PBM “that aims to recoup for independent pharmacies millions of dollars in what the lawyers say are wrongful back-end penalties for Medicare Part D prescriptions, otherwise known as pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration fees.”

The lawsuit claims that Caremark…

…has been assessing pharmacy DIR fees in violation of federal antitrust laws and state laws governing contracts. The lawsuit also challenges Caremark’s agreements to arbitrate claims as being unfair and unenforceable.

“It’s a mafia-style shakedown.” —NCPA CEO B. Douglas Hoey

Weight loss, Jetsons-style

Yet another ‘exercise in a pill’ is in the works, this time out of the University of Florida. Called SLU-PP-332, it’s been tested on fat mice where it got them to lose weight “by convincing the body’s muscles that they are exercising more than they really are, boosting the animals’ metabolism.”

“When you treat mice with the drug, you can see that their whole body metabolism turns to using fatty acids, which is very similar to what people use when they are fasting or exercising. And the animals start losing weight.”

Not enough? How about this: “They also observed that the compound allowed normal-weight mice to run for 70% longer and 45% further^*.”

^* farther

Possible ALS breakthrough

Researchers in Finland say they’ve found a protein that might treat ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). It apparently “prolongs the lifespan of and alleviates disease symptoms in rats and mice.”

The protein, called cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor (CDNF), apparently relieves some of the stress in cells’ endoplasmic reticulum (reticuli?) — stress that, if it becomes chronic, can kill neurons and lead to ALS.

That’s a gross oversimplification, which is why there’s a link to the full, detailed story.

Chains fight for relevance

It’s not just Rite Aid: Other big pharmacy chains are closing stores as well, although not to head off bankruptcy. CVS said it’s closing 900 stores through 2024, and Walgreens will be closing 150 locations and cutting hours in 1,100 more.

Their biggest issue: Differentiation.

Let’s face it: unless one notices the nameplate on the door, little distinguishes shopping in one major drugstore from another. They sell much the same stuff in pretty much the same way.

[…]

This has created a foothold for independent pharmacies that make being a drugstore their number one priority.

Caffeine shifts sleep

When mice are on caffeine — i.e, they take it chronically — some interesting stuff happens to their sleep patterns. They go to sleep later (not surprising) and they wake up later (ditto), but “mice that consumed caffeine when awake slept more solidly, and their overall amount of non-REM and REM sleep was not changed.”

The implication, say the UCLA researchers with the very twitchy mice, is that caffeine during the day might actually improve the quality of your sleep — but only if you can sleep in, as the mice did. If you can’t, “this may explain the perception that caffeine reduces sleep quality.”

Short Takes

ARPA-H to tackle resistance

The White House announced a new, $100 million program designed to find treatments for antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which kill 35,000 Americans a year. It’ll be run out of ARPA-H (the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health).

The designer nobody knew

RIP Burkey Belser, the man who designed the Drug Fact box on every OTC medication (and also the Nutrition Facts food label). He passed away Monday at age 76.

Elsewhere: Rocky Mountain Low edition

Colorado has reported a death from the Black Plague.

“Residents should not eradicate or kill prairie dogs on their property as this increases the risk of exposure to plague-infested fleas.”