Demand for pharmaceutical blister packaging is forecast to expand 6.5% per year to over $4.4 billion in 2021, representing 12.9 billion units. The single dose packaging of solid oral prescription drugs will continue to account for the largest usage whether dispensed directly to patients, tested in clinical trials, distributed as physicians’ samples or administered in hospitals. Blister packs are also widely employed as high visibility containers for over-the-counter (OTC) tablets, caplets, and capsules sold in quantities of 50 or fewer.
In OTC drug packaging applications, growth prospects for blister packaging will benefit from recent and forthcoming switches of previously prescription-only drugs to nonprescription distribution. For example, Xyzal (levocetirizinedihydrochloride), a leading allergy treatment, received FDA approval for OTC sale in January 2017. The OTC version of this medication is sold in a 35-tablet compartment blister pack.
The following factors will spur growth for pharmaceutical blister packaging:
• Ongoing improvements in materials and design capabilities
• Advantages related to patient drug adherence, prevention of institutional drug distribution errors, barrier protection, child resistance, and security
• Advances in processing and filling equipment
• Accelerating growth in oral medication demand spurred by the introduction of new chronic care medicines and the expansion of prescription drug coverage
Pharmaceutical Blister Packaging Demand by Format, 2016