The Verification Router Service (VRS) started off as an idea in 2015. In 2016, it was identified as a preferred option for compliance with the 2019 saleable returns requirement (along with sending data via EPCIS). Since 2017, HDA has been convening industry stakeholders to write business requirements for the VRS, later pulling in solution providers to help with the technical details and then facilitating the group that developed the documentation that exists today.

A new report by Avalere Health, "Trends in Opioid Use: History, Background, and Origins of the Epidemic," comes at a critical point in the broader discussion about opioid abuse and misuse, and provides important context around the clinical, regulatory and policy milestones that contributed to the public health epidemic and impacted the national response to the crisis.