Even once effective RFID chips are in place on drug packaging, other problems may arise.
Critics said from the start that Merck should warn patients about that risk with prominent language on drug packaging and ads.
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Her simpler, clearer drug packaging has been adopted by Target pharmacies nationwide.
In its third quarter regulatory filing, the drug giant said these discussions would likely to lead to a 'black box' warning'in which warning language is displayed in bold type on a drug's packaging.
Digging through the trash, the reporter said he found packaging for a drug called Actovegin, which, if injected, can cause the body to process oxygen more efficiently, improving performance.
Eric Park, of Ziba, a design consultancy, reckons companies must also think about drug delivery systems and patient-friendly packaging, which could create a new kind of branded intellectual property that might be more defensible than drug patents.
Pharmaceutical companies are patenting all aspects of a drug's production, storage, packaging, route of administration and method of use.
Weinstein says Amgen (nasdaq: AMGN - news - people ) has been packaging its longer-lasting anemia drug, Aranesp, with Neupogen, a treatment for cancer-related infections, in order to convince oncologists to prescribe it.
Glaxo itself said that new language on the drug's heart risks should be added to its packaging.
Team officials said at the time that the drug was on hand for skin abrasions, but the reporter said the packaging in the trash indicated that this was the injectable version of Actovegin, which can't be used for skin abrasions.
King got U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in 2003 for pediatric doses of AtroPen and new labeling and packaging for consumers, as opposed to then-existing military labels.
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