Guidelines for drug pedigrees coming soon

By Staff -- Modern Materials Handling, 9/1/2006

In the next few weeks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will issue technical guidelines for implementing drug-pedigree programs, according to a spokesperson for the agency. The guidelines, effective January 1, 2007, will help pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors and retailers create either paper or electronic pedigrees to trace the custody of drugs in the supply chain.

"Widespread adoption of electronic pedigree is a useful tool in further securing the nation's drug supply," says the spokesperson.

IBM last month unveiled an RFID system for tracking and tracing pharmaceuticals. Cardinal Health has partnered with IBM to run a pilot program to test the system.