Specialty Pharmacy


NEW YORK — Walgreens. Costco. CVS Caremark. Rite Aid. H-E-B. Wegmans. Kerr Drug. The list goes on. In all, it was a veritable who’s who of retailing as Drug Store News’ annual Industry 
Issues Summit, which also included a Specialty Pharmacy Roundtable and Diabetes Roundtable, attracted more than 200 attendees — a new attendance record — and featured the most diverse retail panelists to date.


ORLANDO, Fla. — A drug made by Amgen maintained blood platelet counts in patients with an autoimmune bleeding disorder, according to results of a five-year study released Sunday.

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — A biotech drug made by Roche subsidiary Genentech allowed patients with a blood cancer, who did not show symptoms, to delay starting on chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and decreased the risk of their disease worsening, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial.

PHILADELPHIA — The specialty pharmacy market is set to reach $90 billion this year, so it’s clear that managed care organizations have a lot at stake.

That was the overarching theme at a symposium organized by specialty pharmacy provider ACRO Pharmaceutical Services, in conjunction with Armada Health Care, last Thursday at the Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia.

SARASOTA, Fla. — The Specialty Pharmacy Nursing Network has entered a partnership with ViroPharma’s CinryzeSolutions support program, a training and monitoring program for patients using ViroPharma’s Cinryze (C1 esterase inhibitor [human]) who wish to administer the drug themselves.

Cinryze is a drug administered via infusion for the treatment of hereditary angioedema, and the partnership will allow patients to receive training and follow-up support from SPNN nurses, as well as direction from their physicians.

LISLE, Ill. — Pharmacy benefit manager SXC Health Solutions will acquire Birmingham, Ala.-based specialty pharmacy provider MedfusionRx for $100 million, SXC said Thursday.

SXC also may pay an additional $5.5 million if unspecified performance targets are met through fiscal year 2012, the company said. MedfusionRx operates pharmacies in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia and Kansas, and serves more than 9,000 patients.

FORT WORTH, Texas — Regional specialty pharmacy chain ReCept has appointed several people to new executive positions, the company said Wednesday.

ReCept, which owns 15 stores in Texas and specializes in compounding pharmacy services for people with such conditions as HIV/AIDS and cancer, announced the appointments of Nicky Otts as chairman and CEO, Carmine DeNardo as president and COO, Rob Jarvis as EVP sales and chief marketing officer, Jeff Brumbaugh as chief information officer and Stephanie Romero as VP finance.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — Nearly all surveyed patients using BioPlus Specialty Pharmacy’s services over the last six years adhered to their therapies, according to recent statistics.

Quarterly data collected between 2004 and 2010 found that of 17,000 patients analyzed, compliance at the time of discharge was 92%.