CVS Goes to Generation Health for Caremark Head.

[elleng]

CVS Caremark Corp. on Monday took another step toward combining its drug benefit management services with patients' genetic profiles, as it hired the president of genetic benefits manager Generation Health to lead its struggling Caremark business.

CVS is also increasing its stake in Generation Health but did not provide further details.

The president and CEO of Generation Health, Per Lofberg, will take over the Caremark business on Jan. 4. The companies formed a partnership in November to research pharmacogenomics, or the interaction between medications and a patient's genes, which can determine whether a drug works for specific patients.

That could improve treatment and reduce costs for Caremark, as patients could avoid drugs that would not work for them. CVS has said it will start offering some pharmacogenomic services starting in the second quarter of 2010. It said its first priorities will include cancer, heart disease, and HIV.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/12/21/business/AP-US-CVS-Caremark-Generation-Health.html

[BrklynLiberal]

1. How long before they start sharing genetic info with insurance companies..for a profit, of course.

[KoKo]

4. That's a concern...considering CVS has already had law suit for

sharing private doctor's RX for patients with Drug Salesmen for BigPharma.

[midnight]

2. k&r.

[Better Today]

3. Though I am concerned about the usage factor, ie will they sell info to

insurance or government agencies to expand their databases and the potential illicit use therein. . .

This is a good study. I for one am notoriously non-conformist in my medical reactions. Meds that usually slow one down, often speed me up, and visa versa. So nearly any mental or emotional med assistance for me is out. This is fine for me as I don't want those types of meds, but if I were to want meds for some of my personality quirks, I couldn't get any that would work as anticipated. Furthermore, even regular meds for regular stuff often has caused me to have serious side effects that were never listed and typical of having taken an opposite med, though usually the effects (vs. side-effects) did what they were supposed to.

I'm not sure any agency or group would be one I'd trust to do this study as you point out, a lot of valuable information potentially at risk of dubious but profitable disclosures. The study itself though does make sense to be done.

[KoKo]

5. I have a problem with anything with Benadryl components. Makes others sleep...hypes me

up with rapid heart beat and I keep putting it in my patient info..but, I keep getting it prescribed for allergy problems. I constantly have to repeat..."remember I can't take any product with ingredients that Benadryl has in it." I always get odd looks, but they do change the medication. Can't take Amoxycillin, either...so always have to tell the Doc...because they don't really read the chart even though one has to spend a long time filling it out...they just leave it up to a nurse/assistant..and you have to look at what they prescribe so you can stop them before they give you something you can't take.