EPEDIGREE STANDARD RATIFIED

GS1 EPCglobal, the nonprofit standards organization dedicated to promoting worldwide adoption of electronic product codes (EPCs) for supply-chain excellence, said it has ratified the open Electronic Pedigree Document specification. This can be used to give drugs an epedigree, combating counterfeiting and protecting the brand.

The standard is designed to be used as a platform to support a variety of pedigree process applications. It includes epedigree document and envelope schemata that companies can use to bundle multiple epedigrees together in a single document that can be transmitted electronically and read by users across the supply chain, from manufacturers to wholesalers to retailers.

"This effort marks an important step in ensuring trading partners have an interoperable way to exchange document-based pedigrees for pharmaceuticals and other products," Chris Adcock, president of EPCglobal, said. "With this standard in place, supply chain participants can begin to comply with document-based pedigree regulations, like the Florida drug pedigree act, without fear of serious interoperability issues." The new standard also takes into account the California epedigree law and other state pedigree laws and regulations, as well as the federal Prescription Drug Marketing Act, which allows paper or electronic approaches.