prescription drugs

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Overdose Deaths Up Sharply
Overdose Deaths Up Sharply
Jan 26, 2008 8:05 AM CST

Overdose Deaths Up Sharply

Prescription drugs now kill more than cocaine and heroin

(Newser) - The death of Heath Ledger from a suspected drug overdose has highlighted a huge spike in drug overdoses in the US, reports the Los Angeles Times. Accidental poisoning deaths, 95% of which are overdoses, rose sharply from 12,186 in 1999 to 20,950 in 2004. Doctors say prescription drugs,...

US Health Care Spending Tops Record $2T

Medicare jumps record 19% with new drug subsidy

(Newser) - US health-care spending in 2006 increased 6.7% to a record $2.1 trillion—an average of  $7,000 for every person in America. Medicare spending jumped 19%, its fastest growth rate in 25 years, according to the latest government statistics published yesterday in the journal Health Affairs. The Medicare...

Britney Downed Toxic Cocktail Pre-Meltdown

Purple Monsters, Vicodin, Ritalin, Zantac, sleeping pills, oh my!

(Newser) - Oops, she popped pills again—and again, and again, reports the New York Post, describing the cocktail of 100 prescription pills pop spectacle Britney Spears washed down with a "Purple Monster" (a mix of vodka, Nyquil, and Red Bull) in the 36 hours leading up to her flip-out. Even...

Minorities Denied Potent Painkillers, Study Finds

ER docs prescribe more drugs to whites

(Newser) - Minority patients are less likely than white patients to receive powerful painkillers in hospital emergency rooms, a new study has found. Researchers discovered that 31% of white people in pain were given opioid drugs—narcotic painkillers like morphine and codeine—while Hispanic patients got them 24% of the time and...

Lack of Info Plagues Docs Treating Kids

Limited funding for research on meds puts children at risk

(Newser) - A dearth of information on the effects of prescription drugs on children is putting millions of kids at risk, the Washington Post reports. Two-thirds of the medications prescribed to kids haven't been tested on them, and those that have been tested often produce unexpected results: A migraine drug that works...

Budget Batters FDA Oversight of Foreign Drugs

Commissioner to testify before Congress today

(Newser) - The federal Food and Drug Administration's spotty record inspecting foreign drug manufacturers will be even worse next year as its budget drops just as developing countries are flooding the market with new medications, reports the Washington Post. Foreign drug plants are inspected only once every eight to 12 years because...

'Privatized' Medicare Dupes Elderly: Audits

Providers accused of cutting coverage, ignoring complaints

(Newser) - Dems are likely loading political ammo after audits show that Medicare providers have cut thousands from coverage and snubbed those who complain. What's more, HIV/AIDS patients have been booted, standards flouted and phones left ringing. Dems have long opposed efforts to "privatize Medicare," but feds say the changes...

FDA May Ban Cold Medicines for Young Children

Overdoses are common, and death possible in kids under 6

(Newser) - FDA experts have concluded that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines are not safe  for very young children, and they're urging the agency to ban them. In a safety review released yesterday, they conclude that the medicines are not proven effective in children under 6 and have been implicated in more...

Wal-Mart Expands $4 Drug Program
Wal-Mart Expands $4
Drug Program
Sep 28, 2007 2:29 PM CDT

Wal-Mart Expands $4 Drug Program

Retail giant's list of generic meds now includes birth control

(Newser) - A year after launching its $4 prescription drug program, Wal-Mart yesterday added 24 names to its list of 361 generic medications. The company boasts that it now covers more than 95% of treatable common diseases, the St Petersburg Times reports, but critics call the program a publicity stunt and say...

Senate Passes FDA Drug Safety Bill

Measure would give agency more power over prescription drugs

(Newser) - The Senate moved the Food and Drug Administration drug-safety bill one step closer to law yesterday, passing it unanimously and sending it to President Bush, who is expected to sign it. The measure would grant the FDA more control over warnings on prescription drugs, and would allow the organization to...

Feds Crack Down on California Pot Operations

Raids stepped up on medicinal marijuana dispensaries considered legal by the state

(Newser) - The federal Drug Enforcement Agency is stepping up raids on California's medicinal marijuana distributors, confiscating drugs and arresting vendors at ten Los Angeles operations last month alone, Reuters reports. California legalized medicinal marijuana use more than ten years ago, but possession of the drug violates federal law. Federal officials argue...

Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly
Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly
Jul 31, 2007 5:31 AM CDT

Skipping Meds Can Be Deadly

Half of patients undermine health by skipping doses, quitting medication

(Newser) - Half of all patients with chronic illnesses don't take their medication as prescribed, says a new report, undermining their health and hastening their death. Patients with illnesses like heart disease and asthma often skip doses, misunderstand prescriptions or drop medication as soon as they feel better. The result is  more...

British Doc Prescribes Statins to All Men Over 50

Mass anti-cholesterol dosing proposed

(Newser) - All men aged 50 and over should forestall heart disease with daily doses of cholesterol-reducing statins,  a leading health figure in British government has proposed. The so-called “heart czar” acknowledged he might provoke “nanny state” accusations, but said the process of identifying at-risk men is  too cumbersome,...

Americans Pop Happy Pills in Record Numbers

Antidepressants are most-prescribed drug in the US

(Newser) - Antidepressants are America's most prescribed drugs, according to a new CDC report, clocking in more scripts than meds for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or asthma. Prescriptions for antidepressants rose 48% between 1995 and 2002, accounting for 118 million of the 2.4 billion drugs prescribed in 2005.

Al Gore III Returns to Rehab
Al Gore III Returns to Rehab
Jul 5, 2007 5:05 PM CDT

Al Gore III Returns to Rehab

Ex-VP asks for privacy after son's arrest on drug charges

(Newser) - Al Gore III has posted bail and returned to rehab. A day after the ex-VP's son was busted for drugs, the 24-year-old magazine publisher "is getting treatment," his father said today. In his first public reaction, he appeared on the "Today" show and said, "We love...

Big Pharma Loses Generic Drug Fight
Big Pharma Loses Generic
Drug Fight
May 17, 2007 10:23 AM CDT

Big Pharma Loses Generic Drug Fight

Deal for developing nations first blow by Dems in Congress

(Newser) - Congress and the White House have agreed to give developing nations more access to affordable generic drugs by easing some patent enforcement rules. Tucked into a broader trade agreement passed last week, the provision is the first blow to American pharmaceutical companies since the Democrats won control of Congress, the ...

OxyContin Maker Pleads Guilty
OxyContin Maker Pleads Guilty
May 10, 2007 12:01 PM CDT

OxyContin Maker Pleads Guilty

Manufacturer, execs admit misleading public about risky painkiller

(Newser) - The company that makes OxyContin pleaded guilty today to misleading the public about the effects of the potent painkiller. Purdue Pharma and three executives will pay $634.5 million in civil and criminal fines. Federal prosecutors accused the firm of "misbranding" the drug, marketing it as a less addictive...

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