Quote of the day: On the road again…can't wait to get on the road again.

                              Willie Nelson

Good morning!

This has been a busy spring travel season. Three clients, 3 cities, 3 times zones in 3 days.

Road Warrior tip number one: Time doesn't exist!

Once your trip is planned and booked (allowing enough time for minor travel delays) time is out of your control. Our 7:05 flight on Wednesday needed a new control panel….that sounded important enough to wait for.. that 1 hour delay in takeoff made us 30 minutes late. A wonderful meeting occurred with people I love (but you have already heard about how much I LOVE my clients) CLICK HERE for ppp 10-13-2003. I did break some of the normal monotony of presentation of a lot of data with a joke or two (or three… you can't keep the sun from shinin'). Everyone stayed awake long enough to make for a very productive meeting….then back to the airport for another flight… more mechanical trouble (flat tire….which also sounded important)…2 hour delay this time which included having one of my companions unceremoniously yanked from the plane after the doors had already been closed once….security needed to check an additional 3 people (they miscounted previously). The only time pressure was to get to our hotel to sleep enough to be at our best for an early client meeting. Another great meeting with two clients who I had not met face-to-face until then…one more dash to the airport. You guessed it…another delay (no good explanation this time..just late). In addition we got lost in the rental car and made it to our hotel by 11:30pm….short night…then more WONDERFUL clients. We presented our WIIFM (what's in it for me) story and the client fully understands Hopefully we left enough "ammunition" for them to present to THEIR upper management to convince THEM to make a few plan changes to enhance patient safety, enjoy some significant savings while proving an affordable drug benefit…

Once again airport bound… but now that I'm headed home things are going more smoothly. I arrived at the airport in time to finish my last Tom Clancey book, made my on-time flight and was upgraded to FIRST CLASS… enough room to start the weekly PPP…. ain't business travel wonderful? Through all of this getting upset or mad would not have changed the timing by even one minute. My attitude was the only thing I had control over… and I picked POSITIVE. Just go with the flow…. you get there when you get there!

 Have a great week,

Steve (from 34, 000 feet)

 ps We did run into a storm and landed late after a bumpy ride in a holding pattern….

pps I'll be traveling 4/19 and 20 next week….will find another ROAD WARRIOR tip in the process I'm sure.

 Bonus: This "Healthcare Road Warrior" site may provide helpful links to healthcare business travelers (locate computer parts, airlines, hotels on the road, head hunters for when you've had enough, etc)   http://www.pohly.com/admin8.html

1)  What was the name of that new drug?

One month after release…some drug…oh yeah…Namenda…captures 79% of switch/start market for Alzheimer's. Expect to see this one in your top 50 drugs for 2003 if you have many retirees (or bald headed pharmacists).

CLICK HERE for Namenda phenom

2) Walgreen's won't accept health plans with a new mandatory mail benefit 

   but continues to run their own mail order business.

(CLICK HERE FOR walgreen_mail-order)

 …..(Does anyone else see this as peculiar in a schizophrenic way?)

 Maybe they should mail order some Zyprexa or generic Thorazine to themselves…

it sure sounds like a thought disorder to me! (The antipsychotic drugs might help!)

 Click Here for STORY!

3) Minnesota owns $470 million in Pfizer stock…you think they'd know better.

The State of Minnesota owns $470 million in Pfizer stock and it has been very good to them. In 10 years time the stock price has increase 7 fold. The stock goes up because the company is profitable. The company is profitable because it sells drugs for more than it costs them to make the drugs. They can ask for higher prices because they were issued patents on the drugs and are free to charge what they can get. Their competitors can market other similar drugs (to which they hold patents) in competition.

 The State is, in effect, saying "sell drugs at a lower price so that you are less profitable and the stock we own should go down" when they clamor for Canadian re-importation.

 If the State was truly incensed then they should sell all of the drug company stocks they own. I wouldn't suggest reinvesting the money in anything run by the State…. they just don't understand business.

 http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/040412/health_pfizer_3.html

(Talk to my friend Aaron at e-ffective media... he also has a $1000 contest going)

4) Ephedra… going…going…gone!

"Dietary supplement" no longer legal to sell. The stimulant caused death in a professional baseball player (and others) and was deemed to dangerous. Just because a substance is available in a health food store doesn't mean it is healthy! I expect that there will be others to follow…

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-health-ephedra.html

     5) Dietary Déjà vu…all over again?

Eight more "dietary supplements" may soon join ephedra…. They have such "benign" names as "Trip2Night", "Cloud9" and "Legal Speed".  I wonder what tipped the FDA that these might not be "kosher"….

 http://www.pharmcast.com/WarningLetters/Yr2002/June2002/Herbtech0602.htm

     6) Tiny state…big mistake!

Proposed Rhode Island laws governing pharmacy providers would end up costing everyone more money (not less) according to the Federal Trade Commission letter. Relates to networks and mail order….

 http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2004/04/ribills.htm

7) E.D. wars… Iron Mike thrown overboard… …

Levitra, Cialis and Viagra are all adjusting their post-Superbowl marketing.

Previously there was no movement on pricing but the "buy 6 get one free" move by Viagra is a pricing concession (to those paying full price without insurance). You'll have to read it yourself…I can't say this stuff in the "ppp" without blushing…

Click Here for Ed Story-http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/040414/health_levitra_1.html

Buy 6 get 1 free  http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040414/nyw116_1.html