Rfid, Pharmaceutical Regiments : Combating Counterfeit Drugs

Lately Conner and Martin have been working with “radio frequency identification” (RFID) technology. They have developed a detailed system designed to track inventory items using RFID tags embedded invisibly in products. This technology has numerous inventory

Given the facts in the case and as outlined in more detail in this case study, it is our recommendation that Mierdorf and Wolfram move to the case level RFID tagging process. The improvements up and down the supply chain in accuracy, inventory control, reduced labor costs are enough to at least continue with the RFID

RFID systems are currently being used in manufacturing plants to track parts, stay informed of work in progress, reduce product defects, increase throughput, and manage production of given products. Big name retailers such as Best Buy, Metro, Target, Albertson’s, Hewlett Packard, and Wal-Mart are leading the way in implementing RFID systems. These retailers recognize the need to improve inventory efficiency, ensure products are available to customers as needed, decrease theft, and cut down on costs associated with tracking and processing inventory.

The system is a barcode-driven technology that used to track the medications and their delivery route. The defining feature of the system is an information

Pharmaceutical industries face many security issues while importing the drugs without any substitutes been added to their product .The research objective of this paper is to study the implementation of RFID, interference, security and privacy issues.

One of the main and most controversial issues with the RFID chip is that it poses as an invasion of privacy (Freeman, 2007). According to Freeman, “security and privacy experts agree any new technology is always one step ahead of their best possible efforts to secure it.

World Medical Solutions located in Kingman, AZ., manufactures medical equipment that is used worldwide to save lives. Our company is a global leader in technology based medical equipment and cargo tracking is the upmost importance from beginning to end. World Medical Solutions uses technological solutions to ensure our products are tracked throughout the transit process, ensuring that the medical equipment arrives on time. This company ships medical devices overseas, by placing a lateral transmitting tags on the outside of the shipping container and Active RFID Smart labels on the individual items inside the container this allows for proper tracking. Our RFID tags are universally readable, we provide readers to our ships and ports ensuring tags can be read also allowing contact memory buttons to be scanned for intrusion

There might be some potential issues that may arise during the implementation. Using RFID tags and readers widely requires installing hundreds of WLAN access points in order to pick up the signals from the bar-coded products. As a result, this could cause electromagnetic interference with other medical devices, which may affect the outcomes. Also, the competitors in producing and purchasing drugs may gain unauthorized access to customer preferences and use the data in competitive marketing scenarios. Additionally, the tags might be disappeared and lost from the products when the patient accidentally knocked the tagged objects to the floor. When the customer purchase the drug, his identity regarding with the provided prescription is linked with the , and this electronic serial number of the product. This can be accessed thorough unauthorized users that may use the customer’s private information in bad things.

Weaknesses involve high cost per unit and high RFID system integration costs, as well as low level of RFID technology understanding in the market. Opportunities for the RFID incorporate potential for replace of the bar code, increasing end-user demand for RFID systems and market potential in various businesses. Finally, treats involve customers concerns of privacy violation. After all, using of RFID system Drugco Discount Pharmacy improves overall efficiency of the company and on the same time customers’

Counterfeit medications are unsafe and a treat to people around the world. The use of the medications can cause harm to both the body and society. It is important that the consumers are educated about counterfeit mediations. Most people who purchase counterfeit medication may not understand that laws are being broken. Drugs are unlawfully and consciously being made to resemble the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved drug. Sellers are infringing on the companies Intellectual Property (IP), as medications are protected in law by copyright, patents, and trademarks. Copyrights are protecting the pharmaceutical copay ownership of the product, whereas the counterfeit drug suppliers are claiming the medication as the original. Fake medications are being stamped with the same logo Drug patents last 20 years and once the patent expires the owner has the authority to decide how others can use the product. The counterfeit drug supplies do not have the right to copy the makeup and design of the legitimate drug. There are many fake drugs that are slightly identical to the original. Visually the consumer may not be able to tell the difference, the drugs are the same color, shape, and include the unique logo of the pharmaceutical company. Due to the misappropriation consumers are lead to believe they are receiving the same product.

This paper is a very brief review of literature about RFID and its pros and cons with respect to the cosmetics industry.

The market for counterfeit pharmaceuticals has grown exponentially in the last five years. According to an estimate published by the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest in the USA, “Worldwide sales of counterfeit medicines could top US$ 75 billion this year, a 90% rise in five years” (WHO, 2010). This massive rise has greatly affected pharmaceutical companies and law enforcement agencies.

Counterfeit or fake medication is a problem in the world of pharmacy affecting many unsuspecting patients. These patients buy medication from unlicensed sources such as illegitimate online pharmacies, usually with the intent of purchasing it for a cheaper price. However, they do not realize that the product made is artificial and is sub-potent, super-potent, or contaminated, damaging their health, rather than improving it. Fake drugs can also enter the medical supply chain through active ingredients made in other countries such as India or China, that are then packaged to countries such as the United States (Blackstone, Fuhr and Pociask, 2014). The active ingredients would then enter medicinal products sold in pharmacies, and in medicine given to unsuspecting patients in hospitals. Regardless of the path of entry into patient’s bodies, counterfeit medication is damaging to the health of patients, as they can give patients an underdose of drug, and toxic contaminants within the body. Counterfeit drugs pose a very harmful health threat to patients in society.

Using the RFID chip in school is a bad idea because parents don’t like the idea because parents don’t like the idea that their kids are being used as a guinea pigs to test the product. According to Michele Tatro a mother of a student who was told to wear an RFID chip in her ID badge. " So I didn’t even fathom the tracking (aspect). I had never heard of RFID until it came to my doorstep." (Zetter) In other words Michele Tatro had no idea about this RFID chip in the students ID badges until her daughter told her about it. The parents of these students should've been informed/consulted about the RFID chips before the school took on with the RFID chip project because its their right as a parent. Not informing/consulting the parents of these students

Some of the disadvantages of the RFID technology are that it is expensive to install. Small and medium scale enterprises find it costly to use it in their firms and offices. In the case of Harley Davidson, getting products from many different suppliers’ would mean that the tags may have to be installed in liquid and metal products. The problem is that the liquid and metal surfaces tend to reflect the radio waves, which makes the tags unreadable. The tags have to be placed in various alignments and angles for taking proper reading. This is a tedious task when the work involves a large organization like Harley Davidson. Another disadvantage of the technology is that interference has been observed if devices such as forklifts and walkie-talkies are in the vicinity of the distribution centers. The presence of mobile phone towers has been found to interfere with RFID radio waves. Wal-Mart, the retail sector giant, has installed billions of RFID tags in their products throughout the world and they have encountered such problems.