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Assessment of Outpatient Dispensing of Products Proposed for Treatment or Prevention of COVID-19 by US Retail Pharmacies During the Pandemic

Educational Objective
To identify the key insights or developments described in this article

1 Credit CME

JAMA Internal Medicine

Published Online: February 11, 2021

Research Letter

Article Information and Disclosures

Andrew I. Geller, MD¹;

Maribeth C. Lovegrove, MPH¹;

Jennifer N. Lind, PharmD, MPH¹;

S. Deblina Datta, MD¹;

Daniel S. Budnitz, MD, MPH¹

Author Affiliations

¹CDC COVID-19 Response Team, Atlanta, Georgia

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Prior to November 2020, there were no US Food and Drug Administration-authorized products for outpatient coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) prevention or treatment. There have been surges in prescriptions for products (such as hydroxychloroquine¹) proposed to treat COVID-19, but only approved for other conditions. We sought to determine if outpatient retail dispensing frequency of proposed treatments for COVID-19 increased since the March 13, 2020, declaration of a national emergency due to COVID-19.

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Article Information

Accepted for Publication: January 27, 2021.

Published Online: February 11, 2021. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2021.0299

Corresponding Author: Andrew I. Geller, MD, CDC COVID-19 Response Team, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, CDC, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Mailstop V18-4, Atlanta, GA 30329 (ageller@cdc.gov).

Author Contributions: Dr Geller had full access to all of the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.

Concept and design: Geller, Lovegrove, Budnitz.

Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data: All authors.

Drafting of the manuscript: Geller.

Critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content: All authors.

Statistical analysis: Lovegrove.

Obtained funding: Budnitz.

Administrative, technical, or material support: Geller, Lovegrove, Lind.

Supervision: Datta, Budnitz.

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.

Disclaimer: The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the CDC.

References

Shehab N , Lovegrove M , Budnitz DSUS . US Hydroxychloroquine, Chloroquine, and Azithromycin Outpatient Prescription Trends, October 2019 Through March 2020. JAMA Intern Med. 2020;180(10):1384-1386. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.2594 PubMed Google Scholar Crossref

COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Treatment Guidelines. US Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. Accessed December 28, 2020. https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/

American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Assessment of Evidence for COVID-19-Related Treatments. Accessed December 28, 2020. https://www.ashp.org/-/media/assets/pharmacy-practice/resource-centers/Coronavirus/docs/ASHP-COVID-19-Evidence-Table.ashx

US Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. Joinpoint Trend Analysis Software. Accessed December 28, 2020. https://surveillance.cancer.gov/joinpoint/

US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC COVID Data Tracker - Daily Trends in Number of COVID-19 Cases in the United States Reported to CDC. Accessed December 28, 2020. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#trends_dailytrendscases

US Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration. COVID-19 Emergency Use Authorizations: Drug and Biological Products. Accessed December 28, 2020. https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/mcm-legal-regulatory-and-policy-framework/emergency-use-authorization#coviddrugs

AMA CME Accreditation Information

Credit Designation Statement: The American Medical Association designates this Journal-based CME activity activity for a maximum of 1.00  AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:

1.00 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;;
1.00 Self-Assessment points in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification program;
1.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program;
1.00 Lifelong Learning points in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program; and
1.00 credit toward the CME [and Self-Assessment requirements] of the American Board of Surgery’s Continuous Certification program

It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.