Drug makers consider high-tech tags to stop counterfeiting

DELRAN, N.J. (AP) _ Cardinal Health Incorporated of Dublin, Ohio, is participating in a three (m) million dollar project that tests medicine tracking technology. <br/><br/>Big pharmaceutical companies

Tuesday, September 7th 2004, 10:51 am

By: News On 6

DELRAN, N.J. (AP) _ Cardinal Health Incorporated of Dublin, Ohio, is participating in a three (m) million dollar project that tests medicine tracking technology.

Big pharmaceutical companies like Cardinal are hoping the technology will help them spot counterfeit drugs before they reach consumer' medicine cabinets.

By putting tags that transmit radio waves on medicine bottles sent to drug stores, company officials think they will be able to detect fake drugs that aren't moving through usual supply chains.

The U-S Food and Drug Administration urged the industry to adopt the technology earlier this year, citing an increase in counterfeiting cases.

But some say the issue is a way to scare Americans from buying cheaper drugs from foreign countries.