Public Health

Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Commission Launches Drug Formulary Rule Limiting Payment for Opioid Prescriptions

The Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission announces the adoption of Rule 099.41, a drug formulary which regulates all outpatient medications prescribed as a result of work-related injuries. The rule draws on a formulary already in use for state government employees who are injured on the job, with additional provisions for opioid…

Public Hearing on “Excessive Prescribing”

The Arkansas State Medical Board will hold a public hearing on April 5, 2018, beginning at 8:30 a.m. on revisions to the proposed amendments to Regulation 2.4 concerning definitions for "excessive prescribing." The Board held an informational hearing at their last meeting and have since made several very helpful changes…

CDC HEALTH ADVISORY: Influenza

Seasonal Influenza A(H3N2) Activity and Antiviral Treatment of Patients with Influenza Summary The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is providing: a notice about increased influenza A(H3N2) activity and its clinical implications; a summary of influenza antiviral drug treatment recommendations; an update about approved treatment drugs and…

ADH adopts new guidelines for high blood pressure

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is one of the primary causes of heart attack and stroke. Arkansas leads the nation for the highest heart attack death rates and is number five for the highest stroke death rates. To combat this, the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) and other healthcare…

Statewide Rx Take Back October 28

The Arkansas State Crime Laboratory and Medical Examiner’s Office report that hundreds of Arkansans died in 2016 from drug overdoses, with nearly 40 percent of those deaths from Pulaski, Sebastian, and Washington counties. Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge is encouraging Arkansans to clean out their medicine cabinets, and…

ADH Health Advisory

Rifampin/Penicillin-Resistant Strain of RB51 Brucella Contracted from Consumption of Raw Milk Summary: The Texas Department of State Health Services, with assistance from CDC, is investigating Brucella RB51 exposures and illnesses that may be connected to the purchase and consumption of raw (unpasteurized) milk from K-Bar Dairy in Paradise,…

CDC Health Advisory: Increase in Reported cases of Cyclospora cayetanensis Infection, United States, Summer 2017

Summary The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), State and Local Health Departments, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating an increase in reported cases of cyclosporiasis. The purpose of this HAN Advisory is to notify public health departments and healthcare facilities and to provide guidance to healthcare…

CDC Health Advisory

Patients Receiving Eculizumab (Soliris®) at High Risk for Invasive Meningococcal Disease Despite Vaccination Summary Eculizumab (Soliris®) recipients have a 1,000 to 2,000-fold greater risk of invasive meningococcal disease compared to the general U.S. population. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved prescribing information for eculizumab includes a black box warning for…

Where’s My Doctor

"Where's my doctor?" We get that question a lot. It happens often when a physician leaves a practice, usually as an employee. Under most employment contracts the practice – either under hospital or physician ownership – retains ownership of the medical records when a physician leaves. However, the departing physician has a relationship with…