In this Issue

Generics continue to grow as a proportion of the total prescriptions dispensed every year, and as that number has grown, so have the savings that generics bring to the healthcare system. The Generic Pharmaceutical Association has been front and center, touting the benefits that generics bring for lawmakers, payers and, most importantly, patients. Drug Store News spoke with GPhA president and CEO Chip Davis about the organization’s efforts in 2016 and plans for the remainder of 2017.

Americans can’t do enough for their furry friends. To that end, growth continues to be the watchword in the pet care category.

Research released by the American Pet Products Association, or the APPA, indicated that American consumers would spend a total of $62.75 billion on pet supplies and care in 2016, up from $60.28 in 2015 and $58.04 in 2014.

In the United States, colds account for more visits to the doctor than any other condition, according to the American Lung Association. The common culprit behind spreading rhinovirus, the virus behind as many as 40% of all colds, is children — pediatric patients on average suffer from the symptoms of a cold between six and eight times each year. And given how highly contagious many colds are, that may explain why many adults get sick, too.

With more Americans reaching their golden years and the country’s healthcare system stressing home care as a way to drive down costs, products to meet these consumers’ conditions are gaining more attention and increasingly finding their way into drug stores’ mix.

(To view the full Home Health Care Report, click here.)

Owen Mumford is releasing an insulin injection guide to better assist healthcare professionals in educating patients on healthy injection routines. Called “Injecting with Insulin: A Guide to Good Injection Technique,” the guide will be offered in both digital and print formats as early as this month.

(To view the full Home Health Care Report, click here.)

As 2016 drew to a close, the Food and Drug Administration gave a gift of sorts to drug makers looking to submit to the agency an application for approval of a biosimilar drug when it issued its final guidance, “Clinical Pharmacology Data to Support a Demonstration of Biosimilarity to a Reference Product.”

(To view the full Category Review, click here.)

The finalized guidance follows the draft guidance the agency issued in May 2014.

America’s selfie-, Instagram- and overall social media-obsessed habits are propelling growth of oral care products promising instant fixes.

(To view the full Category Review, click here.)

After four decades in retailing, Panzer has been lucky enough to have a number of great mentors in business, but the Albertson’s healthcare chief tells DSN some of the most important lessons he ever learned came as a young cowhand on his grandmother’s Santa Fe ranch.