Big Pharma pushes RFID to the item level
Bob Trebilcock, Modern Materials Handling -- Modern Materials Handling, 2/19/2004
By 2007. That's the aggressive goal the Board of Directors of the Healthcare Distribution Management Association (HDMA) set for the deployment of RFID/EPC technology at the item level for pharmaceutical packagers and manufacturers at the association's annual meeting (www.healthcaredistribution.org).At that meeting, the HDMA, a nonprofit organization of 89 distributors of health-related products, also asked its members to be RFID compliant at the case level by 2005. Together HDMA members represent more than $140 billion in annual sales, nearly 100 percent of the pharmaceutical wholesale distribution market.
"This aggressive timetable demonstrates the dedication of the HDMA leadership in their desire to protect and to secure the nation's drug supply," the board said in a statement.
Cardinal Health (www.cardinal.com) and AmerisourceBergen (www.amerisourcebergen.com ) are two association members that have indicated they will comply with the HDMA deadlines.
Other HDMA members are already implementing RFID solutions in order to meet a March 2004 Wal-Mart requirement. That's when the retailer wants its top 30 pharmaceutical suppliers are to be RFID compliant at the container level for approximately 120 controlled substances, known as Class 2 drugs, shipped to a distribution center in Arkansas.
Applying RFID tags at the item level takes the technology to a new level. The pharmaceutical industry and the FDA see this as an important tool to combat counterfeit drug activity. "The current problem in the U.S. is that we have some sophisticated counterfeiters who see a lucrative business in counterfeit drugs," according to Tom McGinnis, director of pharmacy affairs for the Food and Drug Adminsitation (www.fda.gov ). "There is a high demand for patented drugs like Lipitor and Viagra and the penalties if they're caught aren't very high."
Pharmaceuticals tagged at the item level can be traced from the manufacturer all the way to the drug store counter, McGinnis adds. "When a pharmacist scans the material coming in, they'll know if there's something wrong with the serial number."
To support its goal of case-level compliance by 2005 and item-level tagging by 2007, the HDMA has called for the establishment of a consistent, industry-wide initiative based on the collaborative efforts of all members of the healthcare supply chain, as well as the development of infrastructure that will track products using unique EPC information.
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