Specialty Pharmacy

DUNCANSVILLE, Pa. — Value Drug, through its Value Specialty Pharmacy subsidiary, will be acquiring Brunswick, Tenn.-based specialty pharmacy Restore Rx, the company announced this week.

With the acquisition, the company said it would expand the scope of Value Specialty Pharmacy’s business while retaining the current location, leadership and employees of Restore Rx. The acquisition brings Value Drug a nationwide patient footprint and headquarters in close proximity to the FedEx hub in Memphis, facilitating expedited shipping.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Following last year’s impactful collaboration between Walgreens and the CDC Foundation addressing the Zika outbreak, the two organizations on Wednesday announced they are once again working together to help address another public health challenge — this time HIV prevention.

COSTA MESA, Calif. — J.D Power’s 2017 U.S. Pharmacy Study is showing a drop in overall customer satisfaction for an industry that typically ranks among the highest-scoring ones assessed by the market research company.

FOSTER CITY and SANTA MONICA, Calif. — In a deal estimated at roughly $11.9 billion, Gilead Sciences will be acquiring leading cell therapy company Kite Pharma for $180 per share, the companies announced last week. Among the potential treatments Gilead will acquire is Kite’s most advanced therapy candidate, axicaabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel), a cancer-fighting therapy expected to be the first to market to treat refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma, with a decision date of Nov. 29.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a historic action today making the first gene therapy available in the United States, ushering in a new approach to the treatment of cancer and other serious and life-threatening diseases.

The FDA approved Novartis' Kymriah (tisagenlecleucel) for certain pediatric and young adult patients with a form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Kymriah is the first therapy based on gene transfer approved by the FDA.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Supervalu’s specialty pharmacy division ahs been accredited by the Accreditation Commmission for Health Care, the company announced Thursday. Supervalu Pharmacies Specialty Services is a single pharmacy providing patients with ongoing services for complex treatments to such diseases as osteoporosis, cancer and autoimmune diseases.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS Health company Accordant has received NCQA Patient and Practitioner Oriented Disease Management Accreditation, the company announced Wednesday. The disease management accreditation was given for a number of Accordant’s  programs providing services to patients with rare chronic disease and other conditions on behalf of health plans, government-sponsored plans, labor groups, employers and third-party administrators, and covers 18 conditions, including epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, HIV, Crohn’s disease and others.

WILMINGTON, Del. — AstaZeneca and Merck’s Lynzparza (olaparib) tablets were approved by the Food and Drug Administration, as well as given an expanded indication by the regulatory agency.