Pharmacy

PillPack, the online pharmacy startup purchased by Amazon last year, has obtained nine additional state pharmacy licenses in the last two months, according to Med City News.

Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic's planned $8 million pharmacy will primarily focus on mail-order prescriptions and will not be used for public use, according to the Post Bulletin.

The Pistoia Alliance, a nonprofit alliance focused on driving research and development efforts in the life sciences industry, launched the next phase of its blockchain project Feb. 6.

Chicago-based Novum Pharma filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Feb. 1, and plans to sell its assets, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Drugmaker Gilead Sciences turned around a net loss in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2018, but saw its expenses rise due to research and development costs.

The Senate Finance Committee on Feb. 4 invited leaders from seven major drug companies to testify at a hearing about high prescription drug costs later this month, reports Reuters.

An abrupt shortage of the anti-anxiety drug buspirone is complicating mental healthcare for many patients, reports The New York Times.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., sent a letter to Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Feb. 4, asking why the company is charging $375,000 for a drug that many patients could previously access for free, reports Reuters.

Real-time benefit check (RTBC) is a relatively new technology that can help address the challenges of rising patient share of medication costs and medication non-adherence by surfacing prescription benefit details for patients and providers at the point of prescribing.

Drugmaker Merck ended the fourth quarter of 2018 with net income of $1.8 billion, compared to a net loss of $1 billion in the same period a year prior.