HHS Secretary Congratulates New FDA Commissioner
Washington, DC — Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius officially congratulated new FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret "Peggy" Hamburg, who was unanimously confirmed by the Senate recently. Dr. Hamburg is a nationally and internationally recognized leader in public health and medicine, as well as an authority on global health systems, infectious disease, bioterrorism, and emergency preparedness. "Her expertise and judgment will serve FDA well," said Sebelius. Sebelius also had words of praise for Acting Commissioner and Principal Deputy Josh Sharfstein. "Time and again, [Hamburg and Sharfstein] have demonstrated their professionalism and commitment to ensuring the food we eat and the medicines and products we use are safe."

H1N1 Virus Continues to Spread
Atlanta, GA — Despite the fact that the spread of the H1N1 virus has been more limited than originally feared, the CDC warned the public that "the H1N1 is not going away, despite what you may have heard." This fact was reiterated by the World Health Organization's Director General Margaret Chan's address before the World Health Assembly last month, when she stated that influenza viruses are the ultimate moving targets. According to Dr. Anne Schuchat, interim deputy director for the CDC's Science and Public Health Program, "People are continuing to get sick, to get hospitalized, and unfortunately, to die… Based on the trends we're seeing, we do expect more illness, more hospitalizations, and more deaths… Things could change quickly, and we do continue our efforts to prepare, particularly for the fall, where history tells us we might have a second wave of this new virus."

NCPA Denounces New Wal-Mart Rx Program
Alexandria, VA — The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) lashed out against Wal-Mart's new pilot mail order prescription program, Pharmacy Home Delivery. Under the program, Wal-Mart customers will be able to receive their prescriptions in 7 to 10 business days with free shipping. According to NCPA Executive Vice President and CEO Bruce T. Roberts, RPh, the program raises questions about patient safety and the high cost of treating adverse drug events. "Any proposal built on replacing the corner pharmacy with the post office is penny wise and pound foolish," said Roberts. Citing that an estimated $177 billion is spent annually on hospital, physician, and other treatments for inappropriate medication use, Roberts commented that "Clearly, more patients risk adverse drug events and the resulting treatment costs would soar if a patient's primary community pharmacist is traded for envelopes and 1-800 numbers."

Bill Will Allow Ontario Pharmacists to Renew Rx Without MD
Ontario, Canada — A new bill being proposed in Ontario, Canada, will allow pharmacists to refill prescriptions without a physician's authorization. Under the Regulated Health Professions Statute Law Amendment Act, 2009, pharmacists will not need a doctor's permission to renew prescriptions. By putting the bill into law, the government hopes to reduce wait times for both an appointment with a doctor and at the hospital. It will be particularly popular to the estimated 850,000 people in the province that do not have a family doctor. "By using the human resources we have, we can provide Ontarians with the health care they need safely, quickly, and in more places. Our health care professionals are talented and skilled. It's time to expand their duties to match their qualifications and training," said Premier Dalton McGuinty.