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July 29, 2002

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"FDA Is Urged to Hasten Efforts to Require Bar Codes on Drugs"

Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com) (07/29/02) P. B5; Landro, Laura

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering mandatory

supermarket-style bar codes on prescription drugs, vaccines, and

medical devices to reduce medical errors in hospitals by as much

as 75 percent.  Debate centers on the $1.5 billion implementation

cost and whether or not to require drug companies to ship

prescription drugs to hospitals in unit doses with attached bar

codes; currently, hospitals separate unit doses, which increases

the risk for medical errors.  Drug companies support bar codes,

but they are concerned about immediate implementation of the

technology and are waiting for the FDA to require bar coding and

unit dose shipping.  Only about 15 percent of hospitals are using

bar code technology, and leading hospital group HCA asserts that

all of its 186 hospitals will use bar codes by 2005.

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