Walmart partners with MediLedger to track pharmaceutical supplies

MediLedger is preparing to launch its pilot alongside the U.S. FDA to try and reach the 2023 target to deliver a digitized system for tracking and verifying prescription drugs.

Global retail giant, Walmart Inc. is reportedly expanding its blockchain reach by teaming with MediLedger consortium that builds blockchain solution for tracking the provenance of pharmaceuticals. According to reports, the move would mark Walmart's second blockchain initiative as the company has participated in IBM’s Food Trust.

Sources suggest that the consortium will boost MediLedger as well, whose members already include pharma players like Pfizer and major wholesalers namely AmerisourceBergen, McKesson and Cardinal Health.

Moreover, the move will further act as a boost to the pharmaceutical industry, as the U.S. FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has been mandated to deliver an interoperable, digitized system for verifying and tracking of prescription drugs by 2023.

According to Walmart’s annual report, revenues from its pharmaceutical section (‘Health and Wellness’), which includes the sale of pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs, constituted for $35 billion in sales in the fiscal year, representing 10% of the firm’s total revenue.

Whereas, in June 2019, MediLedger is preparing to launch its pilot alongside the FDA to try and reach the 2023 target with partner (Walmart) to meet this mandate and lead blockchain to the pharmaceutical-tracking world.

Sources cite that the joint efforts between MediLedger and the U.S. FDA, under the government mandate to develop a decentralized system, could be significant as the agency needs to launch a system that tracks and verifies drugs by 2023. The company is also presently testing several options, including some that include blockchain technology.

Though, unlike government-operated systems, the U.S. privatized healthcare system is segmented, making the implementation of a centralized system difficult, and a decentralized blockchain solution linking multiple siloed databases to be more advantageous.

For the record, MediLedger’s entry into the market was based on the verification of drugs that are returned to be resold. However, with the expansion and growth of the consortium, the company can start work on the tracking of all pharmaceutical products, guaranteeing interoperable data and packaging serialization.

Source Credit: https://www.forbes.com/sites/darrynpollock/2019/06/03/walmart-adds-another-blockchain-string-to-its-bow-joins-pharmaceutical-tracking-consortium/#573d51136824

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/walmart-joins-mediledger-blockchain-consortium-132251684.html