Prescription Drugs

Pharmacists in California will have to give women a short health consultation before providing contraceptives without a prescription.

It's Still Hard To Get Birth Control Pills In California Without A Prescription

8:49am May 26, 2016

by Kelly O'Mara

California law now permits pharmacists to sell many types of hormonal birth control methods without a doctor's OK. But good luck finding a drugstore that will dispense the contraceptives that way.

Michelle Pattengill, a technician at L&S Pharmacy in Charleston, Mo., holds a bottle of oxycodone.

Political Gridlock Blocks Missouri Database For Fighting Drug Abuse

3:13pm April 12, 2016

by Bram Sable-Smith, Side Effects Public Media

Every state except Missouri has a database that doctors can check to see if a person filling a prescription for an opioid is trying to get it from other pharmacies, too.

"Everyone that's in there right now has probably done it," Clyde Polly says about Opana injections at his home.

Inside A Small Brick House At The Heart Of Indiana's Opioid Crisis

2:29pm March 31, 2016

by NPR Staff

Prescription painkiller abuse sparked an HIV outbreak in rural Indiana. Kelly McEvers takes NPR's new podcast, Embedded, inside the home where IV drug users meet.

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Drug-Company Payments Mirror Doctors' Brand-Name Prescribing

9:51am March 17, 2016

An analysis of Medicare data shows that the more money a doctor gets from pharmaceutical companies, the more likely he or she is to prescribe brand-name medications. And that influences cost.

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Medicare wants to experiment with tying the prices it pays for medication to effectiveness.

Medicare To Experiment With Tying Drug Costs to Effectiveness

9:39am March 16, 2016

by Julie Appleby

The goal is to rein in drug price increases while increasing the chance that patients will get the medication that works best for them. It's an idea that's getting increasing private-sector traction.

Tim Kilroy runs a business from his home in Arlington, Mass. His insurance company quit covering the long-acting Ritalin that helps him manage his ADHD.

Fight To Lower Drug Prices Forces Some To Switch Medication

1:28pm January 25, 2016

by Alison Kodjak

Health insurers are trying to spark a price war by refusing to pay for some brand-name medications unless they get a big discount. This forces some people to change their prescriptions.

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Nexium is one of several popular medications for heartburn and acid reflux called proton-pump inhibitors.

Anatomy Of Addiction: How Heroin And Opioids Hijack The Brain

7:15pm January 11, 2016

by Jack Rodolico

Roughly 2.5 million Americans are addicted to heroin and opioids like Oxycontin. Researchers say addiction takes over the brain's limbic reward system, impairing decision making, judgment and memory.

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A critic says filing for FDA approval to exclusively sell a drug that's been available for years is "akin to trying to patent a ladder." It also may push the price of the drug beyond the reach of many patients.

FDA Approval Could Turn A Free Drug For A Rare Disease Pricey

10:26am December 23, 2015

by Alison Kodjak

Jacobus Pharmaceutical freely gives its experimental drug to patients with a rare disease. Now a rival wants FDA approval to sell its own version — and expects to charge at least $37,500 per year.

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Carmen Smith now gets the insulin she needs via her doctor's prescription. When she lacked health insurance, buying a version of the medicine over the counter was cheaper, she says. But it was hard to get the dose right.

You Can Buy Insulin Without A Prescription, But Should You?

12:22pm December 14, 2015

by Sarah Jane Tribble

Versions sold over the counter are based on older formulas and make tight control of blood sugar harder. But they're cheaper and might save a patient with diabetes whose alternative is to go without.

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