Licensing

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Generic drug maker Watson Pharmaceuticals has hired a former executive from the Generic Pharmaceutical Association to head lobbying at the federal and state level, the company said Wednesday.

Watson announced the appointment of James Fenton as VP U.S. government affairs. In the new position, Fenton will work out of Watson's Washington offices and will be responsible for leading the company's expanded federal and state government affairs activities.

BOSTON — Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has introduced legislation that would give the state government broader power over compounding pharmacies, the governor's office announced.

WASHINGTON — New legislation aims to increase access to telemedicine services through government-sponsored health programs.

Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., recently introduced H.R. 6719, the Telehealth Promotion Act of 2012, which would establish that "no [medical] benefit covered shall be excluded solely because it is furnished via a telecommunications system," allowing greater access to telemedicine services through Medicare, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program, Tricare, Department of Veterans Affairs and federal employee health plans.

NEW YORK — In 2012, the Food and Drug Administration approved 39 new drugs, 8 alone in December, marking the largest increase in 16 years. The wave of approvals poises pharmaceutical makers to see big gains after billions in losses in recent years to generic drug makers because of patent expirations.

NEW YORK — A St. John's University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Doctor of Pharmacy Candidate last week picked up on a petition to recognize pharmacists as healthcare providers and filed the petition on the Obama Administration's "We the People" web site, according to a report published online by The Pharmacopedia. 

WASHINGTON — An advocacy group said proposed Food and Drug Administration rules for compounding pharmacies would put the public's health and safety at risk.

In a letter sent to Department of Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Public Citizen criticized Food and Drug Administration commissioner Margaret Hamburg for "both undermining her agency's authority in congressional testimony last month and offering a plan that would effectively weaken the agency's oversight of drug manufacturing."

MOUNT PROSPECT, Ill. — A national group representing state boards of pharmacy has announced its support for efforts to strengthen regulations on compounding pharmacies.

The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy said Wednesday that it would implement a four-part action plan centered around inspection of compounding pharmacies and sharing data from the inspections among boards of pharmacies around the country.

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The mail-order pharmacy business of pharmacy benefit manager Prime Therapeutics has received accreditation from the Washington-based healthcare accrediting organization URAC, Prime said Wednesday.

Prime received its first mail-service pharmacy accreditation on Jan. 1, 2009, and will remain accredited through Jan. 1, 2016, the company said.