PCI Pharma Services (PCI) has extended onsite controlled substance storage at its US commercial packaging locations in Philadelphia, PA, and Rockford, IL. The global biopharmaceutical services provider said that further expansions are in the pipeline as demand increases for these specialised requirements.
The company's infrastructure comprises approximately two million square feet of dedicated packaging capacity across the two locations.
Opiod legislation
PCI supports the US DEA Schedule I-V controlled substances for both commercial prescription medicines, as well as those for investigational clinical trials.
The investment complements PCI's existing capacity for blister packaging, a key tenet of recent calls for dispensing opioid prescriptions in limited quantity unit dose packaging as a tactic to combat substance misuse.
“There has been considerable discussion about the opportunity for utilising blister packaging as one tool to positively influence the misuse of opioid and pain management medications in the US,” commented Phil DiGiacomo, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at PCI.
DiGiacomo continued: “A critical factor in that narrative is to ensure safety in the home. Opioid packaging demands the highest levels of child resistance. PCI is in a unique position to make this specialised packaging immediately available by virtue of our proven, highly automated, high-speed solutions, helping our pharmaceutical clients in their transition to meet the latest legislative requirements."
PCI said it has immediate capacity for the introduction of new unit dose blister packaging in formats conducive to meeting the stringent child-resistant requirements required by opioids.
According to PCI, the extensive capacity positions the company to support more than five billion unit dose blister packs annually.