|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Flu News for Senior Citizens
Pharmacies Offering No-Cost Antibiotics Should
Promote Responsible Use, CDC Says
Some are offering no-cost antibiotics have linked
the offers to the cold and flu season, neither of which should be
treated with antibiotics
 March 5, 2009 – The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC)
last week sent out letters to several chain pharmacies that offer
no-cost prescription antibiotics to low-income consumers urging them to
promote responsible use of antibiotics, the
New York Times reports. According to the Times, the agency is
concerned that the no-cost drugs could promote the wrong message and
might worsen the problem of drug resistance.
Pharmacies that are offering no-cost antibiotics to
low-income consumers include
Giant Food Stores,
Meijer,
Publix,
ShopRite,
Stop & Shop and
Wegmans Food Markets.
According to the Times, "The generic antibiotics
included in the free programs are relatively inexpensive compared to
other drugs, in part because they typically are used for limited periods
and are not refilled."
The Times reports that pharmacies have adopted the
programs "to promote customer loyalty and compete for the business of
major retailers."
Lauri Hicks, medical director for CDC's
Get Smart Program, said, "If a patient believes that they can get an
antibiotic quite easily or for free, then it may increase the pressure
on health care providers to prescribe it" (Parker-Pope, New York Times,
3/5).
Anne Gershon, president of the
Infectious Diseases Society of America, said, "We don't want to give
the public the idea that we can just use (antibiotics) whenever we want.
Free drugs can give that impression" (LaMendola,
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 3/4).
She said, "If you give antibiotics away, it sort of
implies that we should use them rather freely," adding, "Giving away
antibiotics could lead to stockpiling of drugs. We need to control
antibiotic use very carefully, because more and more bacteria are
becoming resistant to antibiotics."
Last year, CDC sent similar letters to major
retailers that were promoting low-cost drug programs, urging them to
educate customers about drug resistance (New York Times, 3/5).
Antibiotics Not for Flu, CDC Warns
The new round of CDC warnings come as some
pharmacies offering no-cost antibiotics have linked the offers to the
cold and flu season, neither of which should be treated with
antibiotics.
Neil Fishman, chair of an antimicrobial resistance
work group for IDSA and an infectious disease specialist at the
University of Pennsylvania, said, "Most of the infections during
cold and flu season ... are due to viruses and not the result of
bacteria, so antibiotics don't work," adding, "This is exactly the time
we don't want to encourage antibiotic use" (New York Times, 3/5).
Hicks said, "A number of the chains were
advertising free antibiotics as a solution to cold and flu season. Of
course we know antibiotics don't work for colds and flu," adding,
"Perpetuating that idea is not helpful. We have been trying to combat
that myth and they are not helping with those words" (South Florida
Sun-Sentinel, 3/4). IDSA said the pharmacies would be providing a more
important public service if they offered no-cost flu shots (New York
Times, 3/5).
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
Infectious Diseases Society of America says
it is unhealthy promotional gimmick - a better option to help people are
free flu shots
•