----- Original Message -----
From: Jones, Robin Ann
To: GREATLAKES@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, June 19, 2016 11:55 AM
Subject: FYI: National Council on Disability Issues Brochure on Prescription
Drug Labeling
The following information is forwarded to you by the Great Lakes ADA Center
(www.adagreatlakes.org) for your information:National Council on Disability
Issues Brochure on Prescription Drug Labeling
The National Council on Disability (NCD) has issued a brochure on best
practices for making prescription drug container labels accessible to people
with vision impairments or who are elderly. The new brochure, which is based on
recommendations from a U.S. Access Board stakeholder panel, outlines voluntary
methods that pharmacists can use to provide access to drug label information
for their customers. These include braille and large print, as well as newer
technologies such as digital voice or text-to-speech recorders, radio frequency
identification tags, and smart devices and computers. The brochure also
provides best practices to follow with these formats, such as maintaining
patient privacy in preparing labels and selecting containers that best support
the type of accessible label provided. This guidance is advisory only and is
not mandatory.
Implementing these practices will provide those unable to read print or small
type access to the important information contained on labels for prescription
medications, including dosage and other instructions, side effects, and
expiration dates. NCD, which advises the President, Congress, and federal
agencies on policies, programs, and practices affecting people with
disabilities, is making this information available to pharmacies and industry
associations for dissemination to affiliates and members. Members of the public
are also welcome to download the brochure and share it with their local
pharmacy.
The guidance is based on recommendations developed by a stakeholder working
group organized by the Access Board. The Working Group on Accessible
Prescription Drug Container Labels, which included representatives from
advocacy organizations and industry, assessed various methods for making drug
labels accessible and issued its findings in a report to the Board in July
2013. Since release of the report, various national pharmacy chains have
adopted methods for providing drug label information in accessible formats.
This work was authorized by the "Food and Drug Administration Safety and
Innovation Act of 2012" which directed the Board to develop the best practice
recommendations through a working group and tasked NCD with undertaking an
awareness campaign to inform pharmacies and the public of this voluntary
guidance. The law also calls upon the Comptroller General to conduct a review
to assess the extent to which pharmacies are implementing the best practices
and to determine whether barriers to prescription drug labels remain.
Further information is available on NCD's website
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