Stanol ester Stanol ester Stanol ester is a heterogeneous group of chemical compounds known to reduce the level of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in blood when ingested, though to a much lesser degree than prescription drugs such as statins. The starting material is phytosterols from plants. These are first hydrogenated to give a plant stanol which is then esterified with a mixture of fatty acids also derived from plants. Plant stanol esters are found naturally occurring in small quantities in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, cereals, legumes, and vegetable oils. Stanol ester is often added to rapeseed oil based margarine or other foods
Specialty drugs in the United States and prescribe." Drugs are most typically defined as specialty because they are expensive. They are high cost "both in total and on a per-patient basis". High-cost medications are typically priced at more than $1,000 per 30-day supply. The Medicare Part D program "defines a specialty drug as one that costs more than $600 per month". Most of the prescriptions filled by Pennsylvania-licensed Philidor Rx Services, a specialty online mail-order pharmacy, which mainly sold Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc expensive drugs directly to patients and handled insurance claims on the customers' behalf, such as Solodyn, Jublia, and Tretinoin, would be considered specialty