The FDA hope that by enforcing stricter controls and inspections on imported medicines, the risk they pose to U.S. patients will be lowered. This follows quite a few instances where contaminated and substandard medicines have entered the us medicine market place. Patients who took them sustained health problems and there have actually been cases of death. One particular demonstration of this was the case of contaminated Heparin which was the cause of hundreds of deaths around the world back in 2008. Since that time, the FDA and the citizens of America have been much more wary of the standard of imported medicines.

The PREDICT program works using a barcode system. A central database will be linked to the control stations on the American borders and will contain crucial details about a number of variables. Right away the system will be able to warn the FDA deputies if the manufacturer of the medicinal drugs has the right permit to sell their products in America. If no such permit exists then the prescription drugs shall be confiscated and destroyed.

When it comes to ranking the medicines, the variables that can be considered as to their rank range from the reputation of the manufacturer, the facility that they were made at and present market conditions among others. The higher the risk the deeper the investigation the prescription drugs will be put through.

This program will be running alongside other efforts by the FDA to regulate imported medicines. To ensure FDA compliance they have already set up offices in India, China and Latin America. With these projects FDA consulting should increase among all manufacturers who make medicines to be used within the USA.