In the RFID market, RFID applications can cover a great deal of ground when it comes to the healthcare industry. Most importantly the market can create a system which improves patient safety. Additionally RFID can play a role in running clinical trials of drugs. From an equipment standpoint, RFID can manage both critical care assets and hospital equipment. RFID will also play a role in reducing counterfeiting of pharmaceutical products. It is for these reasons that Frost and Sullivan, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based consulting company, predicts that the market will increase to $2,318.8 million in 2011. In 2004 the market was valued at $360 million.
One reason for the growth is the expectation that current bar coding will be replaced with RFID technology. Currently bar coding is required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In Europe, the UK National Health Service (NHS) and individual legislations in countries such as Belgium, France and Italy require similar compliance.
"The late adoption of barcode technology by the market has meant that the technology is still popular among pharmaceutical and other healthcare applications," says Frost and Sullivan research analyst Priyanka Gouthaman. "The current price of RFID technology would also suggest that a complete replacement of bar codes is unlikely and co-existence of both technologies is expected for the next 10 years."
For further information visit: http://www.autoid.frost.com.
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