Tuesday, November 20, 2007

FDA Pushes to Broaden Warnings On Anti-Depressants
The FDA is urging that a new warning be placed on the labels of all anti-depressants warning of an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior. The current warning label warns of a increase of suicidal thoughts and behavior in children 18 and younger, but the FDA says that the warning should be expanded to also include young adults from 18-24 years old.
The FDA has said that the increase of suicidal thoughts and behavior is limited only to those 24 years and younger. Those taking the ant-depressants 65 and older actually show a decreased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior.
Dr. Steven Galson, the FDA’s drugs chief said, “Antidepressant medications benefit many patients, but it is important that doctors and patients are aware of the risks.”
NBC chief science correspondent Robert Bazell explained that many psychiatrists believe that the first 2 weeks after a young adult begins taking the medication are the most critical.
"What this warning says is to pay close attention to [young] people when they are starting on the medication, when there is a slight risk of suicide. They should be followed much more closely than they need to be later on," he explained.
Although it is good that the FDA has required the label change, some believe that the warnings have been long overdue. According to MSNBC, “last month, a comprehensive analysis of antidepressants for children and teenagers found the benefits of treatment trump the small risk of increasing suicidal thoughts and behaviors in some patients. The Journal of the American Medical Association study also found that risk is lower than what the FDA identified in 2004, the year the agency warned the public about the risks of the drugs in children.”
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Big Pharma’s Bogus Patent Extensions Could Be Challenged
Everyone knows that big pharma has always been allowed by the FDA to skip around the patent laws, keeping their brand name medication on the market longer and delaying price relief to the general public by keeping generic alternatives off the market.
Generally, drug manufacturers are allowed to slightly change their existing drugs just enough to allow them to receive a new patent from the FDA. This practice in no way helps the American public. It is simply about making more money.
Although this practice has never been challenged, a recent Supreme Court ruling is making it tougher for companies to protect product monopolies through bogus patent extentions.
Report From CNN:
The waves from a Supreme Court decision that undermines patents on gas pedals could hit Big Pharma like a truck, say some experts…
The Supreme Court ruled that a patent held by Teleflex Inc. combined two previously existing inventions: an adjustable pedal and a electronic throttle control. The combined product was too “obvious” to be considered a new patent, according to the ruling.
“Granting patent protection to advances that would occur in the ordinary course without real innovation retards progress and may, for patents combining previously known elements, deprive prior inventions of their value or utility,” read the ruling.
By no means does this mean that big pharma will automatically stop manipulating the patent system for their personal welfare, but it is a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.
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Employer Group Insurance
Group Health Insurance offered by an employer.
Group health insurance through an employer is one of the best choices available in health insurance. Any person who has the option of getting health insurance through their employer should try to take advantage of it.
With the growing cost of health care, everyone needs to have health insurance. Employers are seeing this as a great benefit to add to their hiring packages. Employees are more likely to choose a company to work for that has good health insurance then one who does not offer a health insurance coverage.
Group health insurance through an employer is offered to employee, usually based upon their status as a full time employee. Some companies may offer health insurance even to part time employees. The coverage and payments of each plan vary with each employer. The fee for coverage, if any, is usually deducted form an employees pay before taxes, which offers an added benefit to the employee.
Group health insurance is health insurance offered by an employer. Most employers offer some sort of health insurance coverage to their employees. This kind of health insurance is usually the most affordable verses private health insurance plans. It is also becoming a great benefit that employers use to attract employees.
Group health insurance is often offered at a nice discounted rate that makes it affordable. The benefits to an employee can include free coverage for them and low rates for their family, low out of pocket expenses and excellent coverage. Compared to what type of health insurance they would find elsewhere, group health insurance is a bargain.
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