Pharmacy organizations are divided over whether to support new federal electronic pedigree legislation. The Safeguarding America's
Pharmaceuticals Act of 2008 mandates national e-pedigree requirements. Recently, the start of a California e-pedigree rule
was delayed from 2009 until 2011 (see page 74). The National Association of Chain Drug Stores urged Congress to "carefully
review this legislation and refrain from mandating serialization, e-pedigrees, or track and trace requirements." The National
Community Pharmacists Association, on the other hand, stated that it supported the "intent" of the bill, but insisted that
the bill should include full funding of the costs of implementing the mandates. The Health Industry Distributors Association
and the Healthcare Distribution Management Association issued statements offering their strong support for the legislation
for creating a single, national pedigree standard.