Latest California Healthline Stories
EpiPen Controversy Fuels Concerns Over Generic Drug Approval Backlog
Four years after a huge push to speed generics to market, the FDA has more than 4,000 generics waiting for approval.
Mylan’s Generic EpiPen — A Price Break Or Marketing Maneuver?
As news that Mylan will make available a generic version of its own brand-name product, KHN answers key questions about how this development could affect consumers.
‘America’s Other Drug Problem’: Copious Prescriptions For Hospitalized Elderly
Older people are often given a huge number of medications, and many of them are unnecessary or even harmful.
A Depression Diagnosis Doesn’t Mean You’ll Get Treatment, Study Finds
A study in JAMA Internal Medicine suggests that patients known as the “worried well” are actually the highest utilizer of mental health care — and most likely to receive antidepressants.
Price Hike For One Diabetes Drug Costs CalPERS Millions
The drug Lantus is among a new generation of diabetes medications that is difficult for governments — and consumers — to afford.
Government-Protected ‘Monopolies’ Drive Drug Prices Higher, Study Says
Researchers at Harvard University examined thousands of studies to determine why drug prices have climbed and what might be done about it.
This Patient Advocate Has No Quarrel With Big Pharma
Liz Helms of the California Chronic Care Coalition takes some surprising positions on prescription drug costs.
Insurance Rules Can Hamper Recovery From Opioid Addiction
Medicaid and other health insurers require doctors to file time-consuming paperwork before allowing them to prescribe drugs that help people quit opioids. That delay fosters relapse, specialists say.
Drug Price Transparency Bill Clears Key Hurdle in California Legislature
The end of August is the deadline for lawmakers to make a final decision on the measure, which would require pharmaceutical companies to provide advance notice of large price increases and introduction of expensive new drugs.
Can Drug Price Transparency Keep Costs Down?
California is among a number of states considering new laws to control the rising cost of prescription medications.