Tag Archives: 3PL

2015 RxTrace U.S. Pharma Traceability Survey Results, Sponsored by Frequentz Now Available!

March 23, 2015 Dirk Rodgers 3 Comments

I am proud to announce the free availability of the 2015 RxTrace U.S. Pharma Traceability Survey Results, sponsored by Frequentz. You can download the new free report here.

This year’s results were very interesting because most of the responses came in during the critical time just before the 2015 DSCSA requirements were to go into effect. The questions asked were designed to elicit opinions on a wide range of topics, including the respondent company’s ability to meet the regulations on time, their technology choices and practices. This year Continue reading 2015 RxTrace U.S. Pharma Traceability Survey Results, Sponsored by Frequentz Now Available! →

FDA Guidance

FDA Posts Guidance For Wholesale Distributor and 3PL Annual Reporting

December 10, 2014 Dirk Rodgers

The FDA posted new draft guidance for pharma wholesale distributors and third-party logistics providers to follow to meet their obligation to register their licensing information annually. The new requirement is from the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) that was enacted last year (see “It’s Official, President Obama Signs H.R. 3204, DQSA, Into Law“). The draft guidance explains who, what, when and how companies must report. The FDA will make the data reported available to the public through a web site at some point in the future.

The information the FDA will collect as part of the report from both wholesale distributors and 3PLs include facility location and contact information, a unique facility identifier, license information for each State–including expiration dates–and any significant disciplinary action Continue reading FDA Posts Guidance For Wholesale Distributor and 3PL Annual Reporting →

DSCSA

The New Draft Guidance On The Effect of Section 585 of the FD&C Imposed By The DSCSA

October 10, 2014 Dirk Rodgers 4 Comments

The FDA published draft guidance earlier this week that might seem a little confusing. The full title is “The Effect of Section 585 of the FD&C Act on Drug Product Tracing and Wholesale Drug Distributor and Third-Party Logistics Provider Licensing Standards and Requirements: Questions and Answers. Guidance for Industry”. Because it is in “draft” form, it is published only to encourage people to submit comments about it. (See also, “The Differences Between The DSCSA, FDA Rules and Guidance”.)

You should not treat it as real guidance until it is published in final form sometime in the future (if ever—many draft guidances are left handing in the breeze and never finalized). As with all draft guidances, this one comes with a docket to provide the ability for people to leave comments to help the FDA figure out how to improve it before it becomes final.

The draft covers all of the topics that were contained in the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) Section Continue reading The New Draft Guidance On The Effect of Section 585 of the FD&C Imposed By The DSCSA →

DSCSA

Should You Off-Load Your DSCSA Obligations To Your Contract Partners?

October 6, 2014 Dirk Rodgers 2 Comments

Manufacturers who make use of third-party contract manufacturers, contract packagers and/or third-party logistics providers (3PLs) may wish to off-load their 2015 and 2017 obligations under the U.S. Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) to those contract organizations. These obligations include providing Transaction Information (TI), Transaction History (TH) and Transaction Statements (TS), and collecting and holding that data in case of future investigations starting this coming January; and applying the necessary 2D barcode with serial numbers starting in November of 2017.

This may seem perfectly logical. After all, absorbing responsibilities is one of the big benefits that contract organizations offer their customers. But by passing on certain obligations under the law, DSCSA manufacturers may end up with higher risks in the future. Continue reading Should You Off-Load Your DSCSA Obligations To Your Contract Partners? →

DSCSA

DSCSA: Transaction Information

March 17, 2014 Dirk Rodgers 1 Comment

In the new U.S. Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) enacted last November as part of the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA), “Transaction Information” (TI) is one of three primary sets of data that supply chain sellers of drugs must provide to the buyers beginning January 1 of next year. I will discuss “Transaction History” (TH) and “Transaction Statements” (TS) in future essays.

On first look, TI can seem pretty simple. Here is how the DSCSA defines it:

“(26) TRANSACTION INFORMATION.—

The term ‘transaction information’ means—

“(A) the proprietary or established name or names of the product;
“(B) the strength and dosage form of the product;
“(C) the National Drug Code (NDC) number of the product;
“(D) the container size;
“(E) the number of containers;
“(F) the lot number of the product;
“(G) the date of the transaction;
“(H) the date of the shipment, if more than 24 hours after the date of the transaction;
“(I) the business name and address of the person from whom ownership is being transferred; and
“(J) the business name and address of the person to whom ownership is being transferred.”

Sounds kind of like a delivery manifest or packing list. Continue reading DSCSA: Transaction Information →

Pharma Manufacturers

Working With CMOs Under California ePedigree

August 26, 2013 Dirk Rodgers 5 Comments

So far in RxTrace I have explored the possible implications of the California pedigree law on drug repackagers, 3PLs, VMI relationships and, of course wholesale distributors. Now let’s take a closer look at the murky world of the contract manufacturing organization (CMO). I call this world “murky” only because you have to look very carefully at the relationship between a CMO and the contracting manufacturer to fully understand how the pedigree law might be applied. And even then you are going to have to check with the California Board of Pharmacy because the law is so confusing in this area. Continue reading Working With CMOs Under California ePedigree →

California Pedigree Law

3PL Operation Under California ePedigree

August 19, 2013 Dirk Rodgers 2 Comments

Distribution_centre — Photo from Wikipedia

Another one of the many types of businesses that will need to make changes to their operations in California once the pharmaceutical ePedigree law goes into effect is the third party logistics provider (3PL) business. There are a number of important differences between wholesale distributors and 3PLs, and because there seem to be confusion over the wording of the California law and recent comments made by California Board of Pharmacy officials regarding 3PLs (at least I’m confused), companies should be careful about their implementations. I do not have the answers and this is not legal advice, so please check with the Board and your lawyer to confirm anything you read here, but I will tell you my current thinking on the subject. Continue reading 3PL Operation Under California ePedigree →

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