A FDA warning about high doses of the cholesterol-lowering drug Simvastatin was not aggressively advertised to patients or physicians after they were pushed to switch from Lipitor to the less-expensive drug by pharmacy-benefit plans, according to physicians familiar with the drug.

Reposted from NPR: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/06/09/137078525/critic-faults-fda-for-tardy-warning-on-simvastatin-risk?ps=sh_sthdl

Critic Faults FDA for Tardy Warning on Simvastatin Risk

By Richard Knox

Thu., June 9, 2011 12:30pm (EDT) 

The fact that 80 daily milligrams of simvastatin (brand name Zocor) can cause serious muscle damage has been known for years. So why did it take the Food and Drug Administration so long to tell doctors and patients they should avoid that dose?

The answer reveals a lot about the FDA’s reluctance to restrict use of a popular drug much less move to take it off the market even when there are safer alternatives.

The FDA on Wednesday said use of the 80 milligram dose of simvastatin should “be sharply curtailed because of the risk of muscle injury.” The agency says doctors should avoid starting patients on that dose, too, though patients who’ve been on it for a year or more without problems can continue.

Cardiologist Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic, one of the FDA’s most persistent gadflies, says the label change is too little and far too late. Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. –Attorney General Pam Bondi today joined Senate Majority Leader Andy Gardiner (R-Orlando) and Representative Eric Eisnaugle (R-Orlando) to unveil a legislative initiative that will protect consumers from timeshare resale fraud, the number one complaint that the Attorney General’s Office has received for the past two years.  The bill strengthens existing laws by addressing unfair and deceptive marketing and advertising practices by timeshare resale companies. From January 2011 to date, the Attorney General’s Office has received nearly 6,863 complaints.  In 2010, the Attorney General’s Office received more than 12,000 complaints about timeshare resale fraud—more than the next four highest complaint categories combined.
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By Bob LaMendola, Sun Sentinel

August 12, 2011

Health insurers are increasingly charging patients sharply higher amounts for the most expensive drugs, often causing sticker shock for the sick people who need them.

Health plans that have hiked co-payments say affected patients must pay hundreds of dollars more per month for drugs that can cost thousands, in order to prevent big jumps in premiums for everyone else.

But patients and their advocates say the practice discriminates against people who are unlucky enough to have a disease that is expensive to treat, and forces some to stop taking life-saving medicine. Three reports out this month say the practice can devastate patients financially.

Florida has been hit hard, with its large population of seniors and a high proportion of younger patients with HIV, hepatitis, kidney disease and other chronic conditions that are treated with expensive medicines. One estimate says 12 percent of Florida prescriptions — and growing — are affected by the cost hikes.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A recent survey conducted by Mason-Dixon on behalf of the Consumer Federation of the Southeast found 79 percent of Floridians polled feel that patients who require more specialized treatment should not have to pay higher costs for prescription medications than patients whose health conditions are less serious.

The poll was commissioned in response to a growing practice being used by commercial health plans that shifts the cost of expensive medication to Florida patients. Called “specialty tiers,” the practice applies cost-sharing structure to prescription medications. Rather than paying a fixed amount for medication, Floridians with medications on “specialty tiers” – which include the most expensive medications – pay a co-insurance of up to 33 percent of the total cost of the medication.

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TALLAHASSEE—  Driven by the belief that a cigarette is a cigarette, Florida voters are overwhelmingly supportive of requiring all companies that make or sell cigarettes in Florida to pay similar fees to that state.  A new poll conducted by Mason‐Dixon Polling & Research on behalf of the Consumer Federation of the Southeast of 800 likely Florida voters shows that 73 percent of Floridians are supportive of requiring cigarette companies that did not participate in the 1997 tobacco settlement to state paying fees to the state to help with health care costs.     Read more

What is PIP Fraud? 

• Unscrupulous doctors and sham medical clinics are taking advantage of loopholes that allow dishonest medical providers and unscrupulous lawyers to collaborate with shady individuals involved in an accident to receive money even if medical services are not rendered.  

 • The problem is called PIP fraud and it hurts consumers by raising their insurance rates, wasting hard-earned taxpayer dollars and even in some cases, causing bodily harm and even injury to unsuspecting motorists.  Read more

JUPITER, Fla. -Florida CHAIN (Community Health Action Information Network) today released the findings of an online survey conducted to gauge Floridians’ ability to access appropriate care including prescription medicines.

The survey of CHAIN subscribers found that 71 percent of respondents had been forced to switch to different medications because their insurers ceased coverage. More than a quarter of the group claimed they encountered the problem “fairly often” or “all the time.” Read more

Dear Governor Crist and Honorable Members of the Florida Cabinet:

As longtime advocates for consumer protection, we are writing today to express our concerns about the motor vehicle electronic filing system (EFS) rule that was recently drafted by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) and will be presented to the Cabinet on Tuesday, August 10.

State law allows auto dealers to charge consumers a fee to expedite the title and registration work on a vehicle sale and issue a metal plate to the consumer at the time of purchase. Since the service is optional – dealers should be required to give consumers a choice. However, it has come to our attention that many dealers are not disclosing the fee and aren’t telling the consumer the service is optional. Read more