North Carolina Medicaid recipient management lock-in program: the pharmacist's perspective.

Background: The misuse and abuse of prescription opioids have become an urgent health issue in North Carolina (NC), particularly among Medicaid patients who suffer high rates of morbidity and mortality due to abuse and overdose. The NC Division of Medical Assistance (DMA) implemented a recipient management lock-in program, which limits identified patients for a 12-month period to 1 prescriber and 1 pharmacy for benzodiazepine, opiate, and certain anxiolytic prescriptions in order to prevent misuse and reduce overutilization of Medicaid benefits. 

Objectives: To (a) evaluate pharmacists' perceptions of the implementation of the NC recipient management lock-in program (MLIP) and (b) determine how the beliefs and attitudes of pharmacists could promote or inhibit its success.

Dalfampridine: a medication to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Objective: To review the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety of dalfampridine.

Data Sources: A search of PubMed (1966-March 2012) was conducted using the words dalfampridine and Ampyra. Bibliographies of retrieved articles were reviewed to identify additional references.