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The federal government could have saved $650 million in fiscal 2002 had it adopted alternative methods for pricing two popular inhalation drugs whose costs are reimbursed through Medicare, the HHS’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) said in its semiannual report to Congress released earlier this week.
In the wake of widespread reports that enrollment in the new Medicare discount drug card program has been lower than anticipated, HHS said yesterday that nearly 3 million beneficiaries have signed on in the first four weeks of the program’s operation.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has selected Trailblazer Health Enterprises and Caremark/Advance PCS to provide implementation support for the Medicare replacement drug demonstration project.
HHS has established a public docket for input on how the department and its operating agencies -- including the FDA, the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) -- can expedite the development and approval of new drugs and biologicals.
HHS has launched an internal task force to promote the development of innovative medical technologies into applicable patient treatments utilizing drugs, biologics and medical devices.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has asked the Justice Department and the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) for confidential briefings about pending drug company investigations, citing concern that the pharma industry views huge healthcare fraud settlements as merely a cost of doing business with the government.
Many of today's scientific breakthroughs have not been transferred into safe and effective medical treatments, despite record investments in research and development, according to top U.S. health officials at the 10th annual FDA Science Forum.
Pfizer has agreed to pay $430 million, plead guilty to federal criminal charges and enter into a corporate integrity agreement (CIA) with the HHS Office of Inspector General to settle allegations that its Warner-Lambert unit caused doctors to submit Medicaid claims for unapproved uses of one of its drugs.
Brand and generic drugmakers could find it a lot easier to submit applications for fixed-dose combination (FDC) products to be used to treat HIV in poor countries, after U.S. health officials announced they were shifting policy in a move that could usher in new brand FDC drugs and allow generic firms to sell FDC products that are still under patent.
The 19 minority members of the House Government Reform Committee filed suit in a Los Angeles federal court yesterday to force the Bush administration to release cost estimates prepared by the HHS Office of the Actuary while Medicare reform legislation was being considered by Congress late last year.