October 08 Newsletter

APhA-ASP CHAPTER NEWSLETTER Volume 6 Issue 2 October 2008

Upcoming Events

POLITICS and HEALTH CARE Health care is a key issue in the upcoming presidential election. The following chart shows a summary of some of the candidates’ ideas for health care reform.

October 30: ASP Fall Social

Senator John McCain’s health care agenda focuses on three goals:

November 7-9: MRM

November 5: Next General Meeting

November 19: General Meeting/Officer Elections

1. Paying only for quality medical care; 2. Having insurance choices that are diverse and responsive to individual needs; and 3. Restoring a sense of personal responsibility. Senator Barack Obama’s health care agenda focuses on:

1. Providing affordable, comprehensive, and portable health coverage for every American; 2. Modernizing the health care system to contain costs and improve the quality of care; and 3. Promoting prevention and strengthening public health to prevent disease and protect against natural and man-made disasters. Pharmacy-Specific Issues

Issue

Medication Therapy Management

Illegal Prescription Drug Importation & Internet Access to Prescription Drugs

Medicare Part D

Biosimilars and Generic Drugs

Senator McCain

Senator Obama

No specific proposal Advocates for a coordinated care system that requires a single bill for all procedures in place of the current, fragmented structure Focuses on management of chronic disease and payment that rewards quality Supports prescription drug importation, with safety protocols to be developed

No specific proposal Emphasizes prevention and coordinated care of chronic diseases Would require health care plans participating in existing and new public health care programs to utilize proven disease management programs

Supports direct negotiation of Medicare prescription drug prices (Remark: Senator McCain voted against creating the Medicare Part D program) Supports use of generics and regulatory pathway for biosimilars

Supports prescription drug importation from developed countries if they are proven safe and cost less outside the U.S. Supports direct negotiation of Medicare prescription drug prices

Supports use of generics and regulatory pathway for biosimilars

ASP at the Pow-wow

Kristy Sigvartsen (P1), Emily Cantrell (P2), and Trisha Reindl (P1)

Mallory Tarpinian (P2), Jennifer Klink (P2), Ka-Wan Chiang (P4), and Peter Fong (P4)

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT Name: Sam Augustine Hometown: Columbus, NE Classes taught at Creighton: PHA 313 Pharmacy Calculations, PHA 485 & 486 Dispensing and Pharmaceutical Care, I lend a hand with Immunization training and Parenterals lab occasionally. Favorite pharmacy job you’ve had: I had the great opportunity to establish and operate 2 nuclear pharmacies in Nebraska. That experience was both my favorite and least favorite pharmacy experience. Favorite memory from pharmacy school: Pharmaceutics Lab was always interesting and entertaining. We did have a pharmacology lab too. That gave us experience to witness drug effects in animals (mice, rats, cats, dogs – don’t tell Dr. Lust!) Favorite music: It is tough for me to give you any favorites because I like several different types of music. Anything by Tom Petty, Santana or Warren Zevon as popular artists. Other oldies include Simon and Garfunkel and James Taylor. My wife is a Parrot-head so I do listen to Jimmy Buffet. Modern classical and traditional classical favorites include composers like Bernstein, Copland, Debussey, Gershwin, Grieg, Mozart, Wagner etc. I also like traditional Irish music. No country though. Do you have any hidden talents? I’ve been asked to leave Blackjack tables because of alleged card counting and I also enjoy craps. I like to cook, especially grilling and bbq. Those come in handy when tailgating.

Don’t forget to register for MRM! See the Creighton ASP Website for more info.

Check out the ASP website at www.creightonasp.org

Member of the Month October MoM is Jake Mock, a P1 who is already showing enthusiasm for ASP by volunteering at the Pow-wow, Family Safety Day, and registering for MRM.

ASP Student Newsletter written by: Julie Haase, ASP Secretary 2008 Contact Julie at [email protected] with any questions or to submit articles or events.