Disposal Of Date Expired And Unused Medicines In India– A Conceptual Framework

Abstract

As payers decision makers increasingly become primary gatekeepers for access to novel therapies, pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device manufacturers strive to fulfill the evidentiary requests of the pharmacy benefit managers and plan medical directors. This study attempts to gather information to inform manufacturers on the need and rationale behind the payers' requests of head-to-head controlled studies. METHODS: We interviewed 11 medical directors (MD) and 2 pharmacy directors (PD) of commercial health insurance plans; 4 pharmacy benefit managers (PBM); and 2 MD of Medicaid programs. The interviews focused on understanding product coverage decision making and formulary placement. The interviewers followed a discussion guide, but encouraged deeper conversation when appropriate. The interviews were carried out in the summer of 2012 and beginning of 2013. RESULTS: Seven out of 13 (54%) medical directors spontaneously mentioned the need for direct comparison data in clinical trials to ensure adequate decision making. Conversely, only one PD out of the PBMs and PDs even mentioned comparison data and that was in the context of trying to understand the clinical trial design. Two MDs went on to further to state that if the head-to-head data showed increased efficacy that a price premium would be appropriate. Another MD stated that the head-to-head data may assist in formulary placement decisions. CONCLUSIONS: Payers will continue to demand head-to-head studies as long as these studies are seen as the mechanism to address their questions. By fostering a richer dialogue with payers to explore other mechanisms for gathering the comparative data, manufacturers may be able to satisfy the payers' needs with less risky and more relevant study designs.

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Safe Disposal of Unused and Expired Pharmaceutical Products among Pharmacy Students

“…The collected contents will be delivered to a specialized business that employs particular techniques to recycle the salvageable parts and safely dispose of the chemical parts under guidelines. The recyclable parts must be gathered and properly prepared for reuse [11].…”

Knowledge and Awareness Regarding Safe Drug Disposal System among General Population of India

“…In past years, they have collected more than 200 pounds of unused medications that would have otherwise disposed improperly. But in India, the drug take back programme is not functional effectively which may be reason for improper drug disposal [4,5,7].…”

“…Each and every day millions of people are taking the medicine for one or other purpose. They may have any expired drugs, unused or unwanted medicines which may occur as a result of non-adherence, excessive storage of OTC medication or disuse of drugs [1][2][3][4].…”

Platinum Nanoparticle Decorated Expired Drug-Derived N-Doped Ketjenblack Carbon as Efficient Catalyst for PEM Fuel Cells

“…Various surveys conducted in all over the world through multiple offline questionnaires and online forms by different organizations (USFDA, FDA, Pittsburgh Poison Centre, EPA, independent researchers) have revealed the lack of awareness among the people regarding the safe way of disposal. [29][30][31][32][33][34] Disposal of these expired drugs through sink or water bodies results in aquatic contamination and pollutes the environment. 28,31,35 Other than aquatic disposal, different processes of disposal include incineration, landfill, which have proved to be the cause of environmental pollution as well.…”

“…28,31,35 Other than aquatic disposal, different processes of disposal include incineration, landfill, which have proved to be the cause of environmental pollution as well. 29,32 So, to lessen this pollution, different strategies need to be implemented in the aspect of these drugs' utilization.…”