Aegate adds traceability to drug authentication system

Aegate has extended its drug authentication service to provide traceability within the pharmaceutical distribution chain.

The Belgian company's traceability service builds on its existing system of authenticating medicines when they are dispensed, permitting the pharmacist and others to identify when and where a counterfeit drug enters the distribution chain. Aegate says the system not only supports Good Distribution Practices but also creates a broader network of medicines checkpoints to tackle counterfeiting.

"Our commitment to patient safety and the delivery of a workable pharmacy authentication solution has been our absolute priority," said Gary Noon, chief executive of Aegate. "Responding to the needs of several European governments and stakeholders, and in line with the proposed European Pharmaceutical Package relating to counterfeit medicines, we are now able to underpin this with the provision of traceability."

Authentication at the dispensing point and traceability require medicines to contain a unique and, ideally, randomised machine-readable code. This creates a passport for each medicinal item, which can be read at required points in the distribution chain - effectively passport control points.

Verification of the code will log the medicine's location, date and time as it moves through the distribution chain, creating an audit trail. It will also detect and prevent suspicious items from entering the chain or progressing towards the pharmacy.

"Traceability implemented with authentication is a pragmatic, effective and powerful method for tackling the dangerous growth of counterfeit medicines entering the legal supply chain," said Noon.

Developed in 2006 after pilots in Europe and the US, Aegate's drug authentication service has been implemented in Belgium and Greece and is currently being installed in Italy.