Advisory panels the Board formed to address access to medical diagnostic equipment (MDE) and prescription drug container labels will present their reports at the next meeting of the Board on July 10.
The MDE Accessibility Standards Advisory Committee will submit recommendations on how MDE accessibility standards proposed by the Board should be finalized. The standards, which the Board made available for public comment last year, address access to examination tables and chairs, weight scales, x-ray machines, mammography equipment, and other types of diagnostic equipment. Organized last July, the committee met regularly to examine issues raised in public comments on the proposed standard and to adopt consensus recommendations for the Board’s use in finalizing the standards. The committee’s 24 members included medical device manufacturers, health care providers, disability groups, and others.
The Working Group on Accessible Prescription Drug Container Labels will present to the Board recommended best practices for making information on prescription drug container labels accessible to people who are visually impaired or who are elderly. This 18-member stakeholder panel, which was comprised of representatives from advocacy organizations and industry, explored various access alternatives, including braille, large print labels, and auditory technologies such as “talking bottles” and radio frequency identification tags. The working group’s recommendations are advisory only, not mandatory, and will not have the force of guidelines or standards. This guidance is being developed under the the "Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act" which was signed into law last summer.
Visit the MDE homepage and Prescription Drug Container Labels homepage for more information.