Buzz Newsletter 1/15/2026

Welcome to the January 15th edition of the GPhA Buzz Newsletter. This weekly round up of pharmacy news and information is a member benefit, so if you haven't renewed your membership, please do so now. If you have been on auto renewal, you'll still need to renew your membership in our new software system, just this one time.  

There are approximately one zillion articles on the reasons pharmacies are struggling, and each contain their own theories and suspicions. This article from Forbes, however, does an incredible job walking through the timeline of events that have led us to this point in pharmacy history. While it focuses primarily on retail pharmacies like Walgreens, there are real statistics that also impact community pharmacy, and the reporter acknowledges the importance of independent pharmacy in the history of this country. 

We recommend the read. 

Last week, as we reported, the U.S. House passed a three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act subsidies, a bi-partisan vote that included seventeen Republican Representatives joining the Democrats in the vote. It now moves to the Senate where there are several Republican Senators who support extending the subsidies, and thus lowering healthcare costs for most Americans. 

The hiccup? President Trump says he may veto any extension of the subsidies, even if they have bipartisan support. 

Around 1.5 million people have dropped their ACA marketplace health insurance per data from CMS as reported by CNBC, with 22.8 million Americans having signed up in 2026. One way some people are getting around the increased cost of healthcare? Marriage. NPR profiled one such person who married his best friend and roommate in order to get on her health insurance plan. 

There are a plethora of medical shows streaming across all of the networks right now. We've personally been hoarding episodes of "The Pitt" for a weekend binge. And while "The Pitt" is winning awards and praise from medical professionals for its realistic portrayal of an ER, one very popular TV trope -- performing CPR -- hasn't quite kept up with the times. 

While the American Heart Association has endorsed hands-only compression since 2008, some shows are still showing the "counting compressions then breath" CPR that has been DOA for some time. 

It's always a dark day when cheese is recalled. Cheese is life. A few of these cheeses, however, can make life less fun. The FDA has recalled Pecorino Romano cheeses from the Ambriola Company, sold under several brand names including Locatelli, Pinna, Boar's Head, and Member's Mark (Sam's Club), for possible listeria bacteria.  

The most concerning part is the recall is a fairly rare Class I recall, which the FDA defines as "a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of, or exposure to, a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death." 

In other recall news, the FDA has also issued a nationwide recall of Silintan capsules because they were found to contain traces of meloxicam. As you know, meloxicam is an approved NSAID, and has certainly worked wonders on our dog with occasional joint pain, but if it's not listed in ingredients of an approved supplement, it is then unapproved. So back to the production line they go. 

This might be our personal favorite science story today. Researchers at Tufts have made common glucose into a "super sugar," one with all of the sweetness of regular sugar without the extra calories and impact on blood sugar. 

The team has developed biosynthetic tagatose which mimics table sugar without the negative impact to your health. Type 2 diabetics with allergies to artificial sweeteners are rejoicing. 

The Fountain of Youth 

Scientists are researching the secrets to long life by studying animals with particularly long lifespans, like bowhead whales and parrots. 

A Barbie to Be Proud Of

Mattel released a new Barbie with autism, who comes with noise-cancelling headphones, a fidget spinner, and a tablet with alternative communication apps, so young people with autism can see themselves in one of the most popular toys in the world. 

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle 

It seems that almost every business has the time when it needs to cut expenses due to the falling price of goods, including drug trafficking. The Guardian is reporting that drug traffickers from Colombia have started reusing their narco submarines, when once they abandoned them as single use. 

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