Congress focused on Medicare reform in June, with both the House and Senate passing their own versions of a Medicare prescription drug program.
In addition to the Senate bill, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced regulations in mid-June that would streamline the process for making generic drugs available to consumers.
Growth in prescription drug spending for the first quarter of 2003 slowed in part to increased usage of generic drugs, says pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts of St. Louis.
A recent study shows that finasteride (Proscar) prevents or delays the appearance of prostate cancer. The drug, however, also shows sexual side effects and an increased risk of high-grade prostate cancer.
