Braille on drugs
Some time last month the common cold doing the rounds caught up with me and kept me company for the mandatory week. To aliviate my "suffering" I picked up some over the counter drugs from the local pharmacy (Apotheke in German).
The packaging for the drugs was rather unique, thanks to the braille inscription (see pic above) . Normally, I'd have thought, "Ah! how thoughtful of the pharma company, looking out for the visually challenged". But then, the inherent goodness of man invariably vaporizes the minute he starts looking at bottom lines and profit margins, so why the eff would a pharma company take a hit on the packaging to benefit a minuscule percentage of its customers?
The curiosity suitably piqued, I started searching the European Laws for an answer, and in no time the reason for this seemingly altruistic act was staring back at me - Directive 2004/27/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004. The relevant excerpt -
This instance of the inherent goodness of man was a result of some wicked arm twisting by some kind soul(s) in the EU parliament! Long live the "inherent" goodness of man :)
The packaging for the drugs was rather unique, thanks to the braille inscription (see pic above) . Normally, I'd have thought, "Ah! how thoughtful of the pharma company, looking out for the visually challenged". But then, the inherent goodness of man invariably vaporizes the minute he starts looking at bottom lines and profit margins, so why the eff would a pharma company take a hit on the packaging to benefit a minuscule percentage of its customers?
The curiosity suitably piqued, I started searching the European Laws for an answer, and in no time the reason for this seemingly altruistic act was staring back at me - Directive 2004/27/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004. The relevant excerpt -
The name of the medicinal product, as referred to in Article 54, point (a) must also be expressed in Braille format on the packaging. The marketing authorisation holder shall ensure that the package information leaflet is made available on request from patients' organisations in formats appropriate for the blind and partially-sightedEntire text of the directive is available here
This instance of the inherent goodness of man was a result of some wicked arm twisting by some kind soul(s) in the EU parliament! Long live the "inherent" goodness of man :)
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