Partnership Aims to Stop Rx Counterfeiting and Pharmacy Theft

The Healthcare Distribution ManagementAssociation (HDMA) has partneredwith law enforcement and professionalpharmacy organizations usingRxPATROL (Pattern Analysis TrackingRobberies and Other Losses). The purposeis to help combat the theft and illegaltrafficking of prescription medicationsand further enhance supply chainsecurity.

RxPATROL is designed to help pharmacistsprotect against potential robberiesand burglaries, and to assist lawenforcement efforts to apprehend andprosecute pharmacy theft suspects. Thesystem allows pharmacy staff and lawenforcement agencies to quickly andeasily submit a comprehensive theftreport to a secure Internet Web site. Thereport captures a wide range of relevantinformation including type of crime, suspectdescription, modus operandi, andsecurity resources necessary to discouragetheft.

As part of the agreement, HDMA hasimplemented a process that allows itsmembers to report incidents of any typeof theft to RxPATROL. HDMA memberswill also receive a security report offeringadvice on how to lower the risk oftheft-related crime. Because HDMAmembers deliver 9 million prescriptiondrugs and health care products daily to>142,000 health care settings, the groupand the nation's primary health care distributorsstrongly endorse:

•Stricter, more uniform distributorlicensing standards and pedigreerequirements to guarantee consistencyacross the 50 states

•Tougher regulation, stronger lawenforcement, and harsher criminalpenalties for the crime of counterfeitingmedicine

•Adoption of current and emerginganticounterfeiting technologies

•Development of new research andbusiness innovations.