US Pharm. 2007;32(3):11.
Harris Poll Tracks Some
Disturbing Health Trends
Rochester, NY
-- A Harris Poll tracking U.S. adults' health risks and healthy
and unhealthy behaviors has uncovered more bad news than good. The good news
is that seat belt use in the front seats of cars continues to increase, and
smoking has declined. Unfortunately, these findings were offset by the news
that the decrease in smoking is relatively modest and has not changed
significantly in the last 10 years. Some of the decrease in smoking is due to
bans in offices and public spaces. More disturbingly, the findings also
revealed that obesity continues to rise dramatically. On average, from 1983 to
1985, 59% of adults 25 and older were overweight, and from 2006 to 2007, 81%
were overweight. The researchers estimate that more than 80 million American
adults are now obese, with no reason to believe that this number will not
continue to increase.
Caremark, CVS Deal Draws
Closer
Nashville, TN
-- Caremark Rx, Inc. and CVS are closer to sealing their merger deal. Caremark
has mailed supplemental disclosures regarding shareholder appraisal rights and
the structure of fees to its financial advisors. A shareholder vote is to
follow. The Delaware Court of Chancery ruled not to enjoin the CVS/Caremark
merger. Caremark said the merger offers "shareholders significant near-term
value, as well as long-term strategic and financial benefits."
Study Shows Higher Drug
Co-Pays Lead to Less Adherence
Ann Arbor, Mich.
-- According to a study from Thomson Medstat, published in the
American Journal of Managed Care, patients who face higher out-of-pocket
expenses for cholesterol-lowering drugs are less likely to take their
medications and more likely to end up in emergency rooms or hospital beds. The
study found that patients who adhered to their drug regimens had higher
prescription drug expenditures, but because they had fewer emergency episodes,
their total health care costs were not significantly different from
non-adherent patients. According to the researchers, a $10 increase in
co-payment was associated with an 8.9% and 11.9% decrease in the probability
of adherence for new and long-term users of statin drugs, respectively.
Credit Card Debt Linked to
Medical Expenses
New York
-- Based on data from a national survey of low- and middle-income
households with credit card debt, those who identified medical expenses as a
factor in their credit card balances had much higher credit card debt than
those who did not. The study uncovered that Americans with insurance
increasingly find themselves to be paying unmanageable out-of-pocket expenses
for health care, without assets or income safety nets to cover the extra, and
often significant, costs. The survey was conducted by Demos and the Access
Project. Among the medically indebted, young adults between ages 19 and 34 had
the highest level of average credit card debt ($13,303) of any age group.
Credit card debt levels of medically indebted young adults were also
considerably higher than those of non–medically indebted young adults.
Drugs in Development to
Treat Hundreds of Rare Diseases
Washington
-- A new report released by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of
America said that more than 300 medicines are currently in development to
treat hundreds of rare diseases. The NIH estimates that there are
approximately 6,000 rare diseases affecting 25 million Americans. A rare
disease is defined as a condition affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the
U.S.
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