The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 272 No 7289 p270
6 March 2004

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FDA bar codes (more)

FDA finalises barcode ruling to reduce medication errors

The US Food and Drug Administration has finalised a rule requiring bar codes on the labels of most prescription medicines and certain over-the-counter medicines. The rule also requires machine-readable information on container labels of blood and blood components intended for transfusion.

The measure is intended to protect patients from preventable medication errors by helping ensure that health professionals give patients the right drugs at the appropriate dosages. It is part of a wide-ranging effort to improve patient safety. The FDA estimates that the rule will help prevent nearly 500,000 adverse events and will save $93bn in health costs over 20 years.