New system to protect patients from fake medicines goes live across Europe

As of tomorrow (February 9, 2019), most prescription medicines and some over-the-counter medicines for human use supplied in the European Union are required to have a unique identifier (a two-dimension barcode) and an anti-tampering device on their outer packaging.

The anti-tampering device is a safety feature that shows whether the packaging has been opened or altered since it left the manufacturer, thereby ensuring that the content of the packaging is authentic, says the European Medicines Agency.

The new technology means that, from the moment a medicine comes off the production line to the point it reaches a patient, every person and organization it has touched can verify and authenticate the pack: from pharmaceutical manufacturers to wholesalers to pharmacies to GP surgeries and hospitals.