GPhA Buzz 02/19/2026

Dear Holly,

 

Welcome to the February 19 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. The grace period for your 2026 GPhA Membership ends February 28, so if you have not renewed by then, your membership will not be active. That means no more Buzz Newsletter. As a reminder, if you have been on auto renewal, you'll still need to renew your membership in our new software system, just this one time. Please give us a call at 404-231-5074 or info@gpha.org if you would like to renew over the phone. 

 

Don't miss out on this newsletter, the Legislative Update, and your  FREE CEimpact Pharmacist or Technician By Design CPE plans.

The tail end of Gen X and almost all Millennials are mourning the death of Dawson himself, James Van Der Beek*, last week after a long battle with colorectal cancer. Van Der Beek was only 48 years old. It's an alarming reminder that colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of death from cancer for Americans under the age of 50. 

 

A few years ago, Chadwick Boseman of "Black Panther" passed away from cancer at the young age of 43. And according to doctors, the ages at which this cancer is presenting itself are getting younger and younger, with patients in their 20s and 30s receiving diagnoses. The exact reasons for this increase isn't well understood, but early indications (meaning, guesses) might be something wrong in the gut biome, perhaps due to environment or food supply, or both. 

 

Most doctors and healthcare practitioners have been trained on how to call a time of death, when to stop CPR after determining there is no hope of resuscitation. One researcher is now saying we might have it wrong, and that the brain maintains some form of consciousness for "minutes to hours" after being declared dead. 

 

The research is based on a number of factors including recollections from many patients with near-death experiences who can recall hearing their time of death called. 

 

That's not scary at all. 

Cancer killer Keytruda has been approved for treating yet another form of cancer -- ovarian -- as a second or third line treatment. It is now the first immune checkpoint inhibitor for certain types of ovarian cancer, and is used in combination with chemotherapy.

We have a round up of some pharmacy-related stories that caught our attention this week. 

 

It's not quite through the approval process, but in order to avoid shortages, Lilly has built up a $1.5 billion stockpile of the oral GLP-1 orforglipron. It seems the drug maker does not want a repeat of the Great Mounjaro Shortage of 2024. 

 

One more cautionary tale of taking too many OTC vitamin supplements: A man fasting for Ramadan took supplemental vitamins to offset the fasting, and wound up with kidney stones made up of two of vitamin supplements most popular ingredients -- silica and calcium carbonate. 

 

The authors of a study out of Pennsylvania found a lot of non-compliance on antidepressant medications in pregnant women, leading to an increase in ER visits for behavioral health issues. One in five pregnant women have a diagnosis of anxiety or depression before becoming pregnant and ACOG recommends they keep taking that medication throughout the pregnancy in most cases. 

 

After just six months, Jim O'Neill is out of HHS as Acting Director of the CDC and his position as a deputy secretary in Health and Human Services. No reason has been given for his departure but Axios reports it's part of a shakeup ahead of the November midterms. 

Researchers in Brazil have discovered toxic metals in bananas and other crops, thanks to a 2015 mining disaster near the Doce River estuary. The scientists focused on bananas, cassava, and cocoa and found metals like iron oxides, lead, cadmium, chromium and copper in the produce. While not likely too detrimental to adults, the levels pose significant risk for children under the age of six. 

There's a lot going on at GPhA! Here's a look at what's happening at the Association. 

 

Did you know you can access archived Buzz Newsletters on our website? You can find them here. The weekly Legislative Update is also archived online, and you can find it here. If you are not receiving both email newsletters, please let us know. You may have to "whitelist" our domain on your email server. 

 

 

NCPA is over a month into implementation of the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program (MDPNP). The purpose of this survey is to assess member experience with the MDPN to give appropriate feedback to CMS. Access the survey here. 

 

 

 

In just two weeks, we'll open registration for the 2026 Georgia Pharmacy Convention. Check out the Convention website here and come back on March 1, when early bird discounted tickets go on sale for all member pharmacists, technicians, and students. 

 

Our new member referral program is up and running. See more details here, and make sure you invite your non-member colleagues to join GPhA in 2026.