North Carolina Association of Pharmacists 2021, Issue 3 of 12 ncpharmacists.org
E-News ENews
Advancing Pharmacy. Improving Health.
General News North Carolina COVID-19 Update On March 23rd, due to our state’s improved COVID-19 key metrics and growing numbers of North Carolinians vaccinated, Governor Cooper issued Executive Order 204, further easing restrictions. As of last week, our state had seen a steady decline in the number of hospitalizations, reported daily, since mid-February; and as of March 13, the vast majority of counties had deescalated from red (critical) or orange (substantial) alert status to yellow (significant community spread). At the time of writing this summary, approximately 15% of our state’s population had been fully vaccinated. This most recent EO continues to mandate masks and maintain social distancing; but enables retail businesses and other lower risk settings to open at full capacity, 75% capacity for medium risk settings such as restaurants and gyms, and 50% capacity for high-risk settings such as stadiums, theaters and convention centers. Payor-Mandated ‘White Bagging’: Another Escalating ‘Steerage’ & Patient-Safety Problem
In recent years the consolidation of affiliated health plans, pharmacy benefit managers, and specialty pharmacies has led to an ever-increasing practice of forcing health-system infusion clinics and outpatient physician practices to accept ‘white-bagged’ or ‘brown-bagged’ medications, filled by a PBM-owned or preferred specialty clinic. The practice essentially steers the process and choice away from the patient and the
health-system pharmacy. Last week, ASHP and multiple health systems across the nation, including several from North Carolina, sent a letter strongly encouraging the FDA to consider the patient safety and supply chain security risks of white bagging, and take appropriate enforcement action to protect patients. ASHP also recently produced a podcast on the negative implications of ‘white bagging’. New CDC Public Health Guidance for COVID Fully Vaccinated
In response to the growing number of individuals acquiring full vaccination status for COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC issued interim public health recommendations for individuals, in non-healthcare settings, who are fully vaccinated. The CDC also updated guidance for healthcare personnel, patients and residents in healthcare settings. NCPA 2020 Reports
The National Community Pharmacy Association published two reports in March. The 2020 COVID-19 REPORT, which addresses that association’s work to help independent pharmacists and pharmacies during last year; and their 2020 NCPA Advocacy Annual Report, which provides a review of the efforts and outcomes of their greater advocacy agenda. Long-Hauler Specialty Clinics: Potential Future Role for Innovative Pharmacists
On March 23rd, the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy covered a review article published in Nature Medicine about COVID-19 ‘long haulers’ need for dedicated clinics. Significant
numbers of those hospitalized due to COVID-19 infection have debilitating symptoms for greater than three months. COVID-19 infections have led to inflammatory immune response, fatigue, inability to think clearly, shortness of breath, joint pain, arrhythmias, chest pain, blood clots, stroke and posttraumatic stress disorder. It is becoming more evident that for patients with COVID-19, the diagnosis and need for interdisciplinary care may extend far beyond their discharge from the hospital. Furthermore, many of the symptoms and consequences, associated with chronic post-COVID-syndrome, require pharmacotherapeutic interventions. Experts are calling for the establishment of outpatient, specialty clinics to address the diverse and complex needs of ‘long-hauler’ patients, which could present new embedded or collaborative patient care opportunities for pharmacists. A Call for Stronger E-Cigarette Controls
There’s movement afoot on Capitol Hill to ban all flavored e-cigarettes. Last week Democrats sent a letter to the FDA asking for a review and removal of the exemption for menthol and disposable e-cigarettes. The FDA had previously issued a ban, on fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, in July 2020. Legislators have now called on the FDA to remove from the market all flavored e-cigarettes that are currently under FDA review, to deny applications for any flavored e-cigarettes and other flavored tobacco products, and to deny issuing a marketing order for any e-cigarette that poses an increased risk of youth initiation or addiction.
NCAP E-News Issue 3 of 12 Page 1