MEMPHIS, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Each year, approximately 58 million adults go without necessary medication because of its cost. Meanwhile, unused medication contributes to the 3.5 million tons of medical waste that negatively impacts the environment across the U.S. annually. In an effort to mitigate both problems, BurstIQ and RemediChain are partnering to develop an easy-to-navigate app that allows participants to donate unopened, unexpired medications to patients in need.
“This app furthers our mission to improve health outcomes for patients in need,” said Phil Baker, co-founder of RemediChain. “BurstIQ’s deep knowledge of blockchain technology, connection to the industry and app development experience are the arsenal we need to combat the epidemic of prescription waste.”
The goal of the partnership is to allow individuals to easily and legally donate unopened, unexpired prescription medications. As a bonus, RemediChain will also provide donors with receipts for tax deductions worth up to $300 per year.
Upon receiving donated medication, a licensed pharmacist performs a safety inspection. The platform then matches viable prescriptions with patients in need. That’s where BurstIQ comes in. The company’s blockchain technology provides transparency and traceability to verify each donation’s legitimacy. Its contribution creates a network where donors feel supported and recipients feel confident about the roles they play in the medication donation process.
“I have long admired the RemediChain network and included the company and its mission in some of my presentations over the last few years,” said Dr. Wendy Charles, Chief Scientific Officer at BurstIQ. “We are proud to partner with RemediChain, whose mission aligns with our own. We believe this scalable initiative will make treatment more accessible and contribute to a healthier future.”
Although BurstIQ first discussed a collaboration with RemediChain in 2018, the timing didn’t align. Through a serendipitous introduction by Dr. Jack Crumbly of Tuskegee University, the companies reconnected in 2021. App development is set to start this summer, with an initial release planned for the fall.
About BurstIQ
BurstIQ is the world’s first provider of person-centric data network solutions for the identity, health care and life sciences industries. The company’s secure data exchange network combines blockchain, machine intelligence and best-in-class security to build multi-dimensional profiles of people, places and things, called LifeGraphs®, and empower the interactions between them. BurstIQ allows organizations to manage the responsibility of sharing sensitive data with ownership, consent, governance and workflow automation built in. The result is a global, secure data network that allows health systems, payers, digital health companies, pharma & life science companies, and governments to collaborate, share, discover and build the impossible.
About RemediChain
We believe surplus medication should be managed as a resource. The RemediChain platform incentivizes community members to text a picture of their unused prescriptions. When chemotherapy is identified, the platform generates a prescription donation form and link that covers shipping to our facility. Medications are inspected by a licensed pharmacist before being added to inventory. Our virtual inventory is available to a network of cancer centers across the nation connecting vulnerable patients with cancer treatment they would not receive by any other means. RemediChain’s #FlipYourScrip program was named a World Changing Ideas finalist by Fast Company in 2021. For more information, visit www.remedichain.org.