Tag Archives: Pharma serialization

HDA’s 2017 Manufacturer Serialization Readiness Survey Results

There is a reason so many RxTrace essays have something to do with the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) (I won’t list them all, but here are two recent ones:  “HDA Traceability Seminar: RxTrace Future Topic List Explodes” and “HDA Schools FDA On DSCSA”).  It’s because they have their fingers in just about everything related to the US pharma supply chain’s preparation for compliance with the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA).  HDA members are literally in the “center” of the supply chain, and the organization is at the center of many of the most important initiatives related to meeting the DSCSA, including their Origin master data sharing service (see “Dawn of HDA’s Origin, The Key to DSCSA Compliance”), their future Verification Router Service (VRS) (see “First Meeting of the HDA Verification Router Service Task Force”), and they hold the most important DSCSA conference every year (see “FDA Speaks About DSCSA At HDA”).  And their HDA Research Foundation now conducts the most important manufacturer DSCSA serialization readiness survey.  They just published the latest one.  Let’s take a look at it. Continue reading HDA’s 2017 Manufacturer Serialization Readiness Survey Results

A US Medicines Verification Organization (USMVO)?

The Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) makes it clear that the FDA must work with industry stakeholders to figure out exactly how the US pharma supply chain should meet its requirements after November 27, 2023–see DSCSA Section 582(g).  That section specifies “The transaction information and the transaction statements shall be exchanged in a secure, interoperable, electronic manner…”.  There is no mention of the creation of an independent third-party to design or coordinate that exchange, and Continue reading A US Medicines Verification Organization (USMVO)?

Why Aren’t Health Insurance Companies Interested In Pharma Traceability in the US?

Except for Medicare/Medicaid, the United States and Australia are the only countries in the world that do not rely primarily on “single-payer healthcare”.  The term refers only to who pays for the healthcare of citizens, not how that care is delivered.  Those two countries rely primarily on private insurance companies to act as “payers” of healthcare for most citizens and the funds used to pay are Continue reading Why Aren’t Health Insurance Companies Interested In Pharma Traceability in the US?

HDA Schools FDA On DSCSA

Last week the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) submitted nine pages of comments in response to the FDA’s Request For Comments in docket number FDA-2017-N-3857 (find their submission here).  It is worthwhile for you to read because the HDA generally sets the gold standard for detailed analysis of the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA), and because this one is particularly pertinent to discussions going on at the FDA and around the industry right now. Continue reading HDA Schools FDA On DSCSA

OPEN-SCS Announces Major Milestone

Today, the Open Serialization Communication Standard (OPEN-SCS) Group, a collection of healthcare sector companies dedicated to standardizing packaging line serialization and aggregation data exchanges, will announce a major milestone in the push to streamline global track & trace processes.  At Pack Expo in Las Vegas, the organization will hold a press conference to formally introduce its initial Serialization Standard, the Packaging Serialization Specification (PSS) 1.0.  The achievement is to be revealed in Continue reading OPEN-SCS Announces Major Milestone

Sponsored: Don’t Miss These Back-To-Back Pharma Serialization and Tracing Events

There is a rare alignment of events that will happen in the first week of December that is so special that you need to put it on your calendar.  There are two important pharma serialization events that will occur in the Washington DC area and anyone with a serious interest in that subject should attend both.  These events line up perfectly to allow you to travel once, and spend four days that will solidify your understanding of the issues and opportunities embedded within the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) in particular, and pharma serialization in general. Continue reading Sponsored: Don’t Miss These Back-To-Back Pharma Serialization and Tracing Events

FDA DSCSA Public Meeting #1 Exposes Gulf In Goals

The FDA held the first of three scheduled DSCSA public meetings last week.  This one focused on:

  • The vision for 2023; and,
  • The enhanced drug distribution security (EDDS) needs related to tracing prescription drugs at the package level.

The meeting started off with short presentations by representatives from:

In the short time they were each given, these speakers Continue reading FDA DSCSA Public Meeting #1 Exposes Gulf In Goals

Sponsored: How Long Until You Are Fully Serialized?

This week, IQPC released the final report of a very interesting survey they conducted in April through June this year.  The results are fresh and they paint a picture with good news, and not so good news about the readiness of pharmaceutical manufacturers facing serialization deadlines in the United States, the European Union and elsewhere.  The survey focused on serialization planning, implementation progress, traceability in operation and benefits beyond compliance.  You can download the full report here, but let’s take a look at the responses to just one of the questions they asked. Continue reading Sponsored: How Long Until You Are Fully Serialized?