If you listen to the radio enough, you’ve probably heard the ads for Nuvigil (aka armodafinil), a prescription stimulant being heavily marketed toward shift workers as a way to stay alert and awake on the job. But our curious siblings at Consumer Reports Health wanted to know if it really is the cure for “Shift Work Disorder.” [More]
Pharma Medicine
Even More Tylenol Recalled Over Musty Odor
By 10.19.10
Johnson & Johnson’s 2010 continues to stink — literally — as the company announced yet another recall of its Tylenol painkiller over complaints of a musty/moldy odor. [More]
Should CVS Have Sold $21 Inhaler To Asthma Sufferer Who Only Had $20?
By 10.15.10
A woman in New Jersey suffering from an asthma attack had to call a paramedic when her local CVS wouldn’t sell her a $21 inhaler for $20. [More]
Feds Make CVS Pay Out $77.6 Million For Not Monitoring Sale Of Meth Ingredients
By 10.15.10
Federal prosecutors shook down CVS for $77.6 million because it did too little to stop meth-makers from hitting up its stores for ingredients. [More]
191,000 Bottles Of Lipitor Recalled Because Of Musty Odor
By 10.8.10
Though Pfizer apparently initiated a recall of its popular cholesterol fighting drug Lipitor (aka Atorvastatin) in August, it only came to the public attention this week. Regardless, a total of 191,000 90-pill bottles of the drug have been recalled from pharmacies in the U.S. and Canada. [More]
How To Avoid Scammy Online Pet Drug Merchants
By 10.7.10
It’s tempting to skip an expensive visit to the vet’s office when you can just order the same drugs online. Sites offer the exact medications that the vet’s office sells–at much lower prices, without a prescription. It’s not such a good idea, though. Much like buying human drugs online from shady sources (no prescription needed) you may not get exactly what you ordered. The medications that show up on your doorstep could be ineffective, or may even harm your pet. [More]
Birth Control Pills Change Women's Brain Structure
By 10.6.10
A new study found that the brains of women on birth control have more matter in some parts of their brain, like the pre-frontal cortex. So is “the pill” also a smart pill? Not exactly. Researchers say the brain is like a “neural beehive” and messing with one part can mess with others. Or, as the study’s authors put it, one region being larger could actually mean it’s going “catawampus.” [More]
FDA Does Spit-Take Over Mouthwash Labels Saying They Fight Gum Disease
By 9.29.10
The FDA just smacked the taste out of the mouths of Johnson & Johnson, Walgreens and CVS over advertising that their mouthwash fights gum disease, without having science to prove it. [More]
Drug Rep Accidentally Emails Consumer Truth About Overpriced Pills
By 9.23.10
Reddit user TheKarateKid says he emailed a major drug company asking why their $500 version of a $10 generic is worth the $490 markup. The drug company rep accidentally emailed the customer back this message intended for her colleague. [More]
DEA Will Gladly Take Your Old Drugs Off Your Hands On Saturday
By 9.21.10
Have you been staring at that half-full (or is it 2/4 empty?) bottle of Vicodin sitting on your bedside table and wondering, “Should I throw this in the trash, take a bunch and pretend I’m Hugh Laurie, or sell them to some college kids for a huge profit?” If so, then the Drug Enforcement Agency has an answer: Give the pills to them during this weekend’s National Take-Back Day. [More]
Law Enforcement Group: Legalize Pot So Cops Have Time To Fight Real Crime
By 9.14.10
In November, California voters will have their say on Proposition 19, which would make it legal to grow, possess and use up to an ounce of marijuana for personal use. And as that decision day draws near, a group of law enforcement insiders has come out in support of the proposition, saying it would free up the police to focus its efforts on more serious crimes. [More]
Giant Eagle Dispenses Antidepressants Instead Of Fertility Drugs, Now Taking It Very Seriously
By 9.1.10
The words “Clomiphene” and “Clomipramine” might look similar, but if you work in a pharmacy, you should know that they stand for very different things. Clomiphene is the generic version of the fertility drug Clomid. Clomipramine is a tricyclic antidepressant. A woman in Pittsburgh says that the pharmacy at a Giant Eagle grocery store gave her the antidepressant when she was prescribed the fertility drug. She had a severe allergic reaction and ended up in the emergency room. [More]
Get A Free Flu Shot At CVS After Spending $30 On P&G Stuff
By 8.30.10
CVS is doing a deal now where you can get a free flu shot after you spend $30 on qualifying P&G products like Bounty, Tide, and Pampers. Sorry, MA, NY, NJ, HI and Puerto Rico, the offer is not valid in your states. Check your local store for details. [More]
Brand Name Drug Prices Rise Significantly In Past Year
By 8.25.10
Here’s yet another reason to go for generic drugs when you can: drug makers keep raising prices on brand name products. If you group generics and brand names together, drug prices rose by 3.4% in 2009, according to an industry report. However, if you look at just brand name drugs as the AARP did in a new report, the average price hike was 8.3%. An earlier AARP report from May points out that if you look at specialty drugs “widely used by people in Medicare” then the hike jumps to 9.2%. [More]
FDA Tries To Break Precedent, Pull Unproven Blood Pressure Drug
By 8.17.10
The Food and Drug Administration is moving to pull ProAmatine, a blood pressure medication that’s been available for 14 years and racked up a quarter billion in sales, because the manufacturer hasn’t submitted a follow-up study that proves the drug is effective. [More]
CVS Stores To Get Redbox Kiosks
By 8.5.10
In an attempt to spread their retail footprint even further, Redbox has made a deal with pharmacy chain CVS to begin rolling out their video rental kiosks at stores across the country. [More]
Hot Flash Spray Evamist Causes Boobs On Pets, Kids
By 8.2.10
I like FDA warnings like this new one about Evamist, because I can file the symptoms away and use them to impress someone with my Sherlock Holmes skills. Friend: “How did you know she used Evamist?” Me: “Note the tell-tale breasts on her grandchildren and her terrier.” [More]
Kiddie Viagra Could Earn Patent Extension For Pfizer
By 7.28.10
Viagra for kids? That sounds… well, wrong. But apparently, low doses of the erectile dysfunction drug can help children stricken by a rare lung disorder. It could also earn Pfizer a six-month extension on the patent for its blue-chip brand. [More]
