Patient Safety & Quality AssuranceQuestion 68 of 100
Two bottles from the same manufacturer carry NDC numbers that are identical except for the final two digits. What does this most likely mean?
a.One is the brand product and the other is its generic
b.The two bottles contain different strengths of the drug
c.The bottles hold the same drug, strength and dosage form but in different package sizes
d.One of the two bottles has passed its expiration date
Explanation
Only the package segment differs, so the products are identical in ingredient, strength and dosage form and vary only in package size — for example a 100 count bottle versus a 500 count bottle. A brand-to-generic change would alter the labeler segment, a change in strength would alter the product segment, and expiration dating is printed separately and is never part of the NDC.
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