In one of my previous blogs - 'Airborne...is it really effective?' I've mentioned how some drugs are not as effective as they are touted to be. Here's the link to an article I read on USA Today that looks at the safety concerns and cost-effectivness on new drugs in the market.
In a nutshell, 'new' drugs are much riskier than old (those that have been on the market 7 years or so) drugs. And the Institute of Medicine confirmed that despite a high general generic substitution, these drugs are consuming far too much of drug spend - not to mention all the people who would be better off with alternatives or off them entirely.
Click here to read the entire article -
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-10-17-new-drugs_x.htm
Dr. Mike
About mparkinson
Dr. Mike, EVP and Chief Health and Medical Officer, is responsible for the strategic direction and health care management at Lumenos. Formerly Director of Medical Programs and Resources for the U.S. Air Force, he was responsible for policy and planning for the Medical Service with over 2 million beneficiaries, 70 facilities and a $4 billion budget. A retired colonel, he served as deputy director of Air Force Medical Operations and chief of preventive medicine. He is President-Elect of the American College of Preventive Medicine and a member of the Institute of Medicine Committee reviewing NASA prevention programs, the Armed Forces Epidemiological Board. Mike is a recipient of the Air Force Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Service Award of the American College of Preventive Medicine and Distinguished Recent Graduate Award from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He received his A.B. from Cornell University, M.D. from George Washington University, family practice training at the UCLA and his M.P.H., preventive medicine residency and chief residency at the Johns Hopkins University.