Tag Archives: serialization

Will Manufacturers Have Trouble Verifying Some Drugs Next Year?

I recently wrote about several letters sent to the FDA by the Pharmaceutical Distribution Security Alliance (PDSA) regarding the overdue guidance documents (see “In Absence Of FDA Guidance, Follow PDSA Recommendations”).  I highly recommend that you read those letters.  But there was one letter from the PDSA to the FDA that I did not reference in that essay because it is not related to missing guidance.  Instead, it’s about PDSA’s fear about the potential inability of some manufacturers to verify, in the DSCSA sense, certain drugs between now and November of 2019.  To be exact, the type of verification they are worried about is the kind that will be based on a drug’s Standardized Numerical Identifier (SNI). Continue reading Will Manufacturers Have Trouble Verifying Some Drugs Next Year?

In Absence Of FDA Guidance, Follow PDSA Recommendations

PDSA LogoThe Pharmaceutical Distribution Security Alliance (PDSA) is a coalition of companies and organizations dedicated to the safety and integrity of the U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain.  When the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) went into effect on November 27, 2013 the PDSA began to serve as a voice for its members in communications with the U.S. FDA.  Their preferred way of communication is through formal letters signed by their legal advisor, Vince Ventimiglia.  PDSA letters to the FDA are really interesting because they do an excellent job of providing recommendations for the FDA to consider as they prepared to publish the four guidance documents that were due back on November 27, 2015.  The FDA has still not published those documents.  Continue reading In Absence Of FDA Guidance, Follow PDSA Recommendations

Can Anyone Buy Non-Serialized Drugs After 11-27-2019?

Image of a package of non-serialized drugsWell over a year ago, my good friend Kevan MacKenzie, Director, Serialization Technology with McKesson, pointed out a really interesting discrepancy contained in the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) regarding the sale of non-serialized drugs.  I’ve been meaning to write about it since then.  The topic finally bubbled up to the top on my list.

What Kevan pointed out is that there are two sections of the DSCSA that contain slightly conflicting requirements.  This leaves companies Continue reading Can Anyone Buy Non-Serialized Drugs After 11-27-2019?

DSCSA Serialization: What Wholesalers Expect

Image of McKesson's sign on their corporate headquarters building in San Francisco, CARecently, several of the larger U.S. wholesale distributors have sent letters to their suppliers to review what they expect from them relative to the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA).  You may recall that these companies have provided requirements in advance of earlier DSCSA deadlines (see “U.S. Drug Wholesale Distributors Provide Direction To Manufacturers“).  These expectations are aimed at the November 27, 2017 serialization requirements and beyond. Continue reading DSCSA Serialization: What Wholesalers Expect

Pharma Serial Number Randomization Under The Falsified Medicines Directive

Drug companies who serve markets within the European Union (EU) have until February 9, 2019 to add serial numbers within a Data Matrix barcode to their drug packages, among many other specific requirements (see “The ‘Unique Identifier’ in the EU Delegated Act”).  The specific requirements are outlined in the EU Delegated Regulation (EUDR).  I’ve written a lot about the EUDR over the last few years (see RxTrace: Delegated Regulation).  Today I want to highlight and explain a problem that may be brewing in the implementation of the system of repositories as established by the non-profit European Medicines Verification Organization (EMVO).  The potential problem is related to the way the EMVO Continue reading Pharma Serial Number Randomization Under The Falsified Medicines Directive

Dawn of HDA’s Origin, The Key to DSCSA Compliance

This week at the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) Distribution Management Conference and Expo (DMC) the HDA and ValueCentric will provide much more detail around the new master data sharing service they plan to make available in July.  The new service—named “Origin”—is intended to provide members of the pharma supply chain with a single directory of master data for all prescription drugs marketed in the United States (see Origin website).  That is, it is a database of master data wrapped within a cloud-based service. 

Origin master data is composed Continue reading Dawn of HDA’s Origin, The Key to DSCSA Compliance

DSCSA: Saleable Returns Verification

The Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) Traceability Seminar that was held back in early November was so packed with valuable information that I still have a number of topics queued up from that event for RxTrace essays in the future.  Today I want to take a closer look at the results of the Saleable Returns Pilots conducted by the HDA last year to figure out the most efficient way to verify saleable returns.  I discussed the overall project in my report of the Traceability Seminar (see “HDA Delivers Home Run To Record-Breaking Audience”) but today I want to focus in on just two of the approaches piloted.  These are:

  • Manufacturer sends to wholesale distributor product identifiers for only the units purchased by that wholesale distributor, and,
  • Verification Router Service (VRS).

Continue reading DSCSA: Saleable Returns Verification

FDA Finalizes Guidance On Suspect Product

suspect-product-final-guidanceHere we are, waiting for the FDA to publish new draft guidance related to the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) after a deadline that passed more than a year ago, and what do we get?  A final version of a guidance document that was originally published in draft form two and a half years ago:  “Identification of Suspect Product and Notification”.  Well, OK, thanks. 

I have to say, this is important guidance.  In fact, it is probably the most important DSCSA guidance that the FDA has published yet, whether in draft or final forms.  And, unfortunately, Continue reading FDA Finalizes Guidance On Suspect Product