Medisafe to develop barcoded system to confirm origin of prescription medications

Medisafe 1 Technologies Corp., a developer of patented technologies that physically prevent unauthorized administration of prescription medications, announced today that the company intends to begin development of a barcoded system to confirm the origin and authenticity of prescription medications. The product is aimed at reducing ingestion of counterfeit medications.

The concept behind the system is to enable both prescription drug manufacturers and pharmaceutical retailers to confirm that appropriate and authentic medications are delivered to patients.

Counterfeit medications are a continuously growing phenomenon. The World Health Organization predicts that annual counterfeit drug sales will soon reach $75 billion worldwide.

It is estimated that 10 to 25 percent of all drugs sold in developing countries are either counterfeit or stolen. In countries such as China, South Korea, Russia, Uzbekistan, India and South America about 50 percent of all drugs sold are believed to be counterfeit.

"It is estimated that 200,000 people die each year from ingesting counterfeit medications," said, Jacob Elhadad, CEO of Medisafe 1 Technologies. "The counterfeit market is incredibly large and pharmaceutical companies are losing billions of dollars to counterfeit sales while patients in need of medication are at significant risk."

"Developing products that ensure that appropriate medications are administered to a patient is the mission on Medisafe 1 Technologies," Elhadad added.