Editorial: My Two Cents!
(Please consider how pharmacy is being affected today.)

Republic - A political order in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who are entitled to vote for officers and representatives responsible to them.

Democracy - Government by the people exercised either directly or through elected representatives; rule by the majority.

Socialism - A social system in which the producers possess both political power and the means of producing and distributing goods.

If we truly are a republic and/or a democracy, then the government is responsible to us! If we are responsible to the government and the government controls the means of producing and distributing goods, then we are socialists.

The following goes for democrats, republicans, independents, or whoever!

• If we ask them to do something for us and they don't, they need to be removed from office.
• If we ask them to do something for us but they do something to benefit them, they need to be removed from office.
• If we ask them to do something for us and they tell us "You just don't understand the whole picture," they need to be removed from office.
• If we ask them to do something for us and they snub us, they need to be removed from office.
• If we ask them to do something for us and they don't even know what we are talking about, they need to be removed from office.

We need to seriously consider "term limits" and an easier mechanism for removal of elected officials from office.

Why pay our taxes?

It has been very disconcerting the past couple of weeks to see so many of the individuals that are considered for some of the highest offices in the nation being exposed for not paying their taxes. If it was just one person, that might be understandable, but it is several people. How can they stand up, face the nation, and set policy and then expect us to follow when they don't even follow the laws of the land themselves? We have a serious "character" problem in the U.S. leadership!


Loyd V. Allen, Jr., PhD, RPh
Editor-in-Chief

FDA to Place New Limits on Prescriptions of Narcotics
Many doctors may lose the opportunity to prescribe 24 popular narcotics as part of a new effort to reduce the deaths and injuries that result from these medicines' inappropriate use said federal drug officials.

A new control program will result in further restrictions on the prescribing, dispensing, and distribution of extended-release uploads like OxyContin, fentanyl patches, methadone tablets, and some morphine tablets.

These products are classified as Schedule II narcotics and already are restricted by the FDA and the DEA. However, the current restrictions are not meeting the goals that the FDA's new drug center wants to achieve.

They are talking about putting in place a program to try to ensure that physicians prescribing these products are properly trained in their safe use before they can actually prescribe these products. This is going to be a massive program.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/health/policy/10fda.html?_r=1

Pfizer to List Payments to Doctors, Researchers
Pfizer reported it will begin next year to disclose most payments made to doctors and other U.S. healthcare professionals to comply with the spirit of recently proposed legislation and boost trust in its products and collaborations.

By early 2010, Pfizer aims to begin listing its payments for consulting, speaking engagements, and clinical trials on its Website (www.pfizer.com).

This will make Pfizer the first biopharmaceutical company to commit to reporting payments for conducting Phase I to Phase IV clinical trials, in addition to disclosing payments for speaking and consulting.

However, the new disclosure plan does not cover payments to some contributors to medical journal articles, such as technical medical writers who do not prescribe medicines and who are sometimes listed as authors of formal study findings.

Pfizer, in some cases, will compensate a technical writer to work under the direction of a clinical trial investigator and the technical writers' contributions will be publicly disclosed in the acknowledgments section of the article. This disclosure does not provide details about these specific payments.

Industry critics have complained that many important medical journal articles are written by "ghostwriters" who have not actually been involved in clinical trials, but nevertheless make strong conclusions about a drug's effectiveness and safety that can impress doctors and boost sales of the medicine.

Pfizer said medical journal articles written with the help of its hired technical writers do not constitute "ghostwriting" if assistance from the writer is noted in the acknowledgments section of the article.
http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssHealthcareNews/idUSN0953964720090210

Things my mom taught me!

1. Appreciate a job well done! ("If you and you're brother are going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning!")
2. Religion (You better pray that will come out of the carpet!)
3. Logic (Because I said so, that's why!)
4. Foresight (Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident.)
5. Osmosis (Close your mouth and eat your supper.)
6. Contortionism (Just look at the dirt behind your ears!)
7. Stamina (You sit there until all that spinach is gone.)
8. Hypocrisy (If I've told you once, I've told you a million times�don't exaggerate!)
9. Anticipation (Just wait until your father gets home!)
10. Justice (One day you'll have kids�I hope they turn out just like you!)

Mom, Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day
Appreciate the time you have together�it passes all too swiftly! Happy Valentine's Day!