The radio frequency identification (RFID) technology enables pharmacies and wholesalers to verify the unique electronic product code (EPC) on Viagra packaging using electronic scanners that communicate the code over the internet to a secure Pfizer website.
Pfizer has invested several million dollars to date in the technology, which discourages counterfeiting because it is both difficult and expensive to duplicate.
We want pharmacists who fill prescriptions for Pfizer medicines, and patients who use those medicines, to have increased confidence that they are receiving authentic product and not a potentially dangerous fake. We are creating additional barriers for criminals who might attempt to counterfeit our products, said Tom McPhillips, vice president of Pfizer’s US Trade Group.
Despite the promise of RFID technology, Pfizer said in a statement that it believes the technology will not eliminate drug counterfeiting by itself. Instead the company said that the problem must be addressed on many different fronts, including tightening state regulations for the licensing and distribution of pharmaceutical products, modifying business practices, increasing enforcement, and using technology effectively.
Pfizer also anticipates that it will take several years before RFID is applied broadly throughout the pharmaceutical industry. Cost will be a significant consideration, as well as the readability and reliability of RFID tags. Standards must be developed to govern technology and data exchange. And RFID also will require the pharmaceutical distribution industry to change the way it does business.
