Op-Ed: Op-Ed: Why the U.S. Must Rethink the Move to Digital-Only Medication Information
By Laura Kuhn
Over the past year, hospitals, pharmacies, and patients have been the victims of devastating cyberattacks that have crippled the healthcare system. The wave of healthcare cyberattacks recently led NPR to refer to 2024 as the “year of health care hacks.” The American Hospital Association tallied at least 386 healthcare cyberattacks in 2024, the worst of which was the attack on Change Healthcare that compromised the personal health information of 100 million Americans.
Recent healthcare cyberattacks raise serious questions about how we integrate technology into our healthcare system and should force us to reconsider what’s truly in the best interest of patients and health outcomes. Unfortunately, there’s a movement to digitize life-saving information, regardless of the potential consequences when it comes to medication instructions.
Nearly 70% of adults in the U.S. take at least one prescription drug, and many take multiple. Staying on track, especially for those juggling multiple prescriptions, is more complicated than one might think. It’s important that Americans can easily reference instructions on when and how to take their medications, as well as information about potential side effects. That’s especially true because over 125,000 Americans die every year as a result of preventable medication non-adherence, i.e., not taking their medications as prescribed.
Some countries are trying to address this challenge by shifting medication information online and reducing access to printed versions. Many developed countries have opted for “e-labeling,” or digital medication information. For example, the European Union now allows QR code medication information over printed versions. Countries like South Korea, Japan, and Brazil have taken more aggressive steps, mandating that digital information take precedence over printed versions. Developed countries across the globe have put themselves on the path of total digitization of medication information.
However, putting that essential information on the path to total digitization would limit, not expand, access and exacerbate adverse health outcomes for many people in the United States. About 42 million Americans don’t have broadband access, meaning they wouldn’t be able to access digital medication information. Additionally, about 25% of Americans over 65 do not have a smartphone needed to scan a QR code for digital medication instructions, and 10% of Americans between the ages of 62 and 75 don’t even know how to use a QR code. Not to mention, digital medication information would make us even more vulnerable to cyberattacks that could cut off all Americans from their medication information, regardless of their broadband access or technology skills.
Despite this, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a rule that would standardize medication information, also known as Patient Medication Information (PMI), in a way that prioritizes digital formats. In addition to the dangers of moving PMI to a digital format, the FDA’s rule would create a new design for medication information that is hard to understand and isn’t designed based on how people actually understand information.
A recent survey shows that over 90 percent of respondents preferred printed, easy-to-read versions of PMI over the FDA’s version. The vast majority would not feel safe using the FDA’s version while caring for loved ones, and most would find accessing digital-only PMI difficult. Despite consumers’ preferences and the risks associated with digital healthcare resources, the FDA continues to move forward with its proposed changes.
After the devastating healthcare cyberattacks we’ve seen so far, the last thing we should be doing is putting critical medication information on the path to a digital-only format that patients may not be able to access or understand. The FDA should listen to consumers who overwhelmingly prefer a printed format that’s easier to understand and use.
My hope is that the Trump administration will take a hard look at the FDA’s proposed rule on medication information. In light of consumers’ clear preferences and the “year of health care hacks,” we must rethink the move to digital-only medication information.
Laura Kuhn has been a registered nurse for 20 years and currently works at WakeMed Children’s Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina.
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