ePrescribing News by State
Alaska | Arizona | California | Colorado | Florida | Kansas | Kentucky | Michigan | Minnesota | Montana | New Hampshire | North Dakota | Ohio | Tennessee | Texas | Vermont | Virginia | West Virginia
Alaska
Tamper-resistant prescriptions on tap for Medicaid recipients
By Margaret Bauman
Alaska Journal of Commerce
A new federal measure, coupled with pending state legislation, could substantially reduce the cost of filling prescriptions for controlled drugs in Alaska, a state pharmacist said Feb. 28.
Dave Campana, the state's Medicaid pharmacy program manager, said a new federal program requiring medical professionals to use tamper-resistant prescription forms could cut thousands of dollars annually from expenditures paid through the state's $68 million Medicaid prescription budget.
Campana said state Senate Bill 196, now pending in the Legislature, could also reduce by $1.4 million a year the amount of money spent related to controlled substance abuse.
SB 196 would allow the state Board of Pharmacy to establish a database noting all controlled drugs dispensed in Alaska, including the name, address and birth date of the person for whom the prescription was written, as well as the name of the pharmacy dispensing the controlled substance. Access to the database would be available to medical practitioners licensed to prescribe or dispense such medications. Federal, state and local law enforcement authorities with court orders could also obtain the information...
Source: http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/030908/hom_20080309099.shtml
Arizona
"Arizona Law Creates Database for Tracking Prescription Drug Use"
Source: Government Technology
Arizona Ordered to Step Up E-Prescribing
Governor Janet Napolitano has issued an Executive Order (PDF) to significantly increase patient safety through the use of e-prescribing in Arizona. It is estimated that patients in the United States suffer 1.5 million preventable adverse drug "events" every year because of mistakes with their medications. Costs associated with those errors are estimated to exceed $4 billion annually.
"E-prescribing can reduce mistakes and the associated costs dramatically," said Governor Napolitano. "Arizona has been a leader in developing electronic health records and the means by which to exchange those records while still protecting personal privacy. This order will ensure that we stay on that cutting-edge of health care technology."
Currently, less than 3 percent of Arizona health care providers use any form of e-prescribing. Yet, by ordering and transmitting prescriptions electronically, providers can avoid the mistakes that often accompany hand-written prescriptions; allow providers to create systems that can catch potential drug interactions; and can help provide accurate patient data quickly, especially in the case of an emergency.
The Governor's Order also urges Arizona's executive branch agencies to develop awareness and use of consumer tools that assist in medication safety. One example is the Med Form, available at www.themedform.com.
In 2005, the Governor created Arizona's Health-e Connection to research, organize and implement a statewide e-health information system. In 2007, Arizona was awarded a $12 million federal grant to enhance and expand that work. Arizona Health-e Connection, along with executive branch agencies, will play a leading role in coordinating the promotion of e-prescription capabilities in Arizona.
For more information about the Office of the Governor, please visit www.azgovernor.gov.
Source: Government Technology - http://www.govtech.com/gt/314909?topic=117677
California
Gov. Schwarzenegger Announces $25 Million in Grants to Expand Tele-Health in Underserved Parts of California -
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today announced $25 million in new grants for health care and technology projects, which could help expand access to specialty doctors in rural and other underserved parts of the state...
...The Governor’s comprehensive health care proposal includes the following health information technology reforms:
• Requiring e-prescribing by all providers by 2010...
Source: http://gov.ca.gov/index.php?/press-release/7234/
"Health care revolution hits Humboldt County" by Carol Harrison, 9/2/2007
It started with the diabetes registry and has spread to electronic prescriptions...
Source: The Eureka Reporter
Top
Colorado
"Colorado physicians have a new tool to stop prescription drug abusers who may be "doctor shopping" in order to obtain their fix..."
Source: Denver Post
Florida
ACS Wins New Health IT Deal in Florida
October 25th, 2007 by The HealthNEWS Team
Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. (ACS) has signed a potential 4.5 years agreement (1.5 years base period with three 1-year options) valued at $11 million, with the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA). The contract is to provide the state’s Medicaid program with Medicaid Drug Therapy Management services. ACS, along with AHCA aims to provide physicians, pharmacies and patients with information and resources on the cost-effective usage of prescription drugs under the state Medicaid program, apart from developing solutions to improve quality of care while ensuring, an overall cost-reduction...
Florida Researchers Tap Insurer Database To Identify Rx Risks
University of Miami researchers on Wednesday launched a project in which they will use a database of 11 million Humana members' medical records to identify potential dangerous side effects from prescription drugs... The database will not include any patient-identifying information...
Source: iHealthBeat
S80-E GENERAL BILL Controlled Substances; ...authorizes Health Dept. to
contract for administration of electronic monitoring system for certain
controlled substances...;
05/13/02 Died on Calendar
Source: http://www.flsenate.gov/session/index.cfm?BI_Mode=ViewBillInfo&Mode=Bills
&SubMenu=1&Year=2002E&billnum=80
Top
Kansas
February 04, 2008
Kansas Considers Bill To Create Rx Drug Tracking System
Kansas is considering creating a statewide prescription tracking database to help curb prescription drug abuse and overprescribing, the Wichita Eagle reports. Kansas is one of 15 states without such a system.
Last week, state Sen. Vicki Schmidt (R), a pharmacist, introduced a bill that would authorize the state Board of Pharmacy to create a statewide database where pharmacists would record each time a prescription for a potentially addictive drug is filled. Physicians would have access to the database to check which prescriptions patients had filled before prescribing another drug.
The database could alert officials to patients who visit several doctors for the same medication and to physicians who prescribe certain drugs in high amounts, according to supporters of the bill. Access to the database would be restricted to pharmacists, medical professionals who prescribe drugs and, in limited circumstances, law enforcement, Schmidt said.
The state has applied for a $400,000 federal grant to develop the database and begin the program, Schmidt said. Once developed, operating the database would cost $100,000 to $140,000 annually -- money that could come from savings to the state's Medicaid prescription program (Koranda, Wichita Eagle, 2/2).
Source: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2008/2/4/Kansas-Considers-Bill-To-Create-Rx-Drug-Tracking-System.aspx?topicID=59#
Kentucky
Governor Takes Action to Advance E-Health in Kentucky
...Fletcher and the Cabinet for Health and Family Services also announced that a new round of e-Prescribing Partnerships in Kentucky (ePPIK) grant funding will be available soon...
Source: Government Technology
Kentucky E-Health Group To Build Statewide EHR Network
Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher (R) on Tuesday authorized the creation of a not-for-profit group to advance the state's goal of establishing a statewide electronic health record network by 2011, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports.
Source: iHealthBeat
Kentucky Health Information Partnership (K-HIP)
(Microsoft Word - View as HTML)
This e-Health corporation would serve as the operational arm of the Kentucky e-Health Network Board. Placing this corporation in the middle ground between ...http://ehealth.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/07039A86-F384-4ED0-905B-9DBE2E7A623F/0/KyeHealthGovernanceRecommendations
Revised064071.doc
Source: http://chfs.ky.gov/news/ePresribing.htm
http://www.lrc.ky.gov/record/04rs/HB56.htm
Top
Michigan
Patient e-prescriptions Safe in Michigan
Michigan has been recognized for its commitment to improving patient safety in the first-annual SafeRx Award, by promoting the use of health information technology -- such as e-prescribing -- as a means to improve health care quality.
The state of Michigan was one of the top 10 e-prescribing states in the nation which demonstrated outstanding leadership through its use of electronic prescribing technology. States were ranked based on the number of prescriptions routed electronically in 2005 out of the total number of prescriptions eligible for electronic routing. The SafeRx Award recognizes how e-prescribing enhances patient safety by providing a more secure and accurate prescribing process.
"It is an honor for the state of Michigan to be recognized for not only its dedication to the citizens of Michigan but also for its commitment to ... the efficiency of the prescribing process," said Director Janet Olszewski, of the Michigan Department of Community Health.
Source: Government Technology - http://www.govtech.com/gt/99799
Minnesota
Minnesota Governor Signs Law Requiring E-Prescribing by 2011
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) signed into law a bill that requires electronic prescriptions and creates new quality reporting rules for physicians, Modern Healthcare reports (Evans, Modern Healthcare, 5/30).
Under the law, pharmacists, physicians and others who prescribe or dispense medication in the state will be required to use electronic systems by 2011.
The measure also calls on Minnesota's health commissioner to create a set of provider quality measures for public reporting and incentive payments.
Beginning in July 2010, the bill would require the state to publish comparative price and quality information for groups of services typically used to diagnose or treat an illness. (iHealthBeat, 5/20).
The bill is projected to save 10% to 15% from state employee benefits and public health plan spending by 2015.
Pawlenty vetoed an earlier version of the bill because it would have expanded coverage for the state's safety net health plans (Evans, Modern Healthcare, 6/2).
Source: iHealthBeat.org
Montana
"Database touted to track prescriptions, flag addictions"
Source: Great Falls Tribune
New Hampshire
N.H. Governor Pushes for 100 Percent E-Prescribing Capability by October 2008
New Hampshire Governor John Lynch and his Citizens Health Initiative -- including New Hampshire hospitals, doctors, pharmacists and insurers -- announced today a joint push to ensure 100 percent E-prescribing capability in New Hampshire by October 2008.
"Together, we are setting a goal of making New Hampshire the first state in the nation where all of our health care providers are able to prescribe medication electronically -- an innovation that will improve health care quality and help save lives, while at the same time reducing health care costs and improving the efficiency of our healthcare system," Lynch said.
The plan calls for all primary care providers to have the ability to prescribe prescriptions electronically by October 2007 and for all health care clinicians in New Hampshire to have the ability to e-prescribe by October 2008.
"This is an aggressive goal, but one I believe we will meet because the people who can make it happen - the New Hampshire Hospital Association, the New Hampshire Medical Society, New Hampshire's Pharmacists and New Hampshire's major insurers - have all joined together through the Citizens Health Initiative to develop and endorse this plan," Gov. Lynch said.
In July, the Institute of Medicine released a study estimating that problems with the prescription drug system -- uncertainty about what the doctor prescribed, an inappropriate medication for the patient, wrong dosages or just the wrong drug -- cost the health care system $77 billion a year nationally. If looked at on a per-capita basis that could mean up to $300 million a year in costs in New Hampshire -- for new prescriptions, repeat doctor visits, lost time at doctors' offices and pharmacies, and in hospital admissions because of adverse drug reactions. It also estimates that 7,000 patients nationally die each year as the result of adverse drug reactions. And 1.4 percent of hospital admissions every year are the result of adverse drug reactions.
To address these serious issues, the Institute of Medicine recommended health care providers move to sending prescriptions electronically, which allows easier checks of appropriate drugs, doses drug interactions, decreases confusion about what the written prescription says, and saves doctors, pharmacists, and patients time and money. National studies indicate that the use of e-prescribing saves pharmacies and doctors' offices up to two hours a day.
Source: Government Technology - http://www.govtech.com/gt/101798
Top
North Dakota
"...A $372,000 federal grant puts the state Pharmacy Board in charge of the database to monitor prescription records for narcotics..."
Source: The Bismark Tribune
Ohio
"World renowned clinic extends electronic prescription capabilities with Sun integration platform
Founded in 1921, the not-for-profit Cleveland Clinic is a leading academic medical center serving the Cleveland, Ohio metropolitan region, and one of the world’s largest and most renowned healthcare facilities. More than 2,000 healthcare personnel provide care to some 2.6 million patients annually, and the clinic is regularly recognized as one of the top four hospitals in the country by U.S. News & World Report.."
Source:
http://www.sun.com/customers/software/cleveland.xml
Tennessee
Tennessee pursues e-prescribing
By John Moore
Tennessee’s Medicaid program and the state’s largest public/private health information exchange have launched an e-prescribing pilot program geared toward physicians who practice in rural areas.
The Bureau of TennCare and Shared Health’s HIE launched the pilot program in early March. Fifty rural physician practices in 13 counties are participating in the e-prescribing initiative. The chosen practices lacked access to or the resources to deploy e-prescription technology.
The pilot program will use Cerner’s e-prescribing software, said Rick Krohn, Shared Health’s marketing director. Physicians were given the option of using a tablet PC or a 17-inch LCD monitor with an existing computer. Krohn said 49 of the 50 participating physicians opted for the tablet PC.
The program also helps physicians connect to the Internet or upgrade an existing connection to broadband, Krohn added.
Physicians receive the equipment, training and support for free. They also gain access to a medication database, prescription histories, notification of TennCare’s and other payers’ formularies, and alerts about potential adverse drug interactions, among other features, according to Shared Health.
After the pilot program ends June 30, TennCare and Shared Health will examine physicians’ utilization patterns to determine which program features are most useful to rural practitioners.
The organizations will consider factors such as prescribing patterns before and after implementation, the percent of prescriptions that underwent prior authorization, and trends in the use of generic drugs.
Source: http://www.govhealthit.com/online/news/350282-1.html
ePrescribing Pilot Workgroup
Confirm that TN will incur savings from ePrescribing & improved patient safety ... for ePrescribing;
Source: www.tennesseeanytime.org/ehealth/documents/m02_Pilot_workgroup
DrGourleyMay23.ppt (PowerPoint .ppt)
Executive Summary (88.39kb .pdf)
Texas
Texas Physicians Slow To Adopt E-Prescription Technology
Electronic prescribing has have been slow to catch on in Texas, but the technology is beginning to gain momentum, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.
Only about 4% of Texas physicians have adopted e-prescribing technology, and the state ranks 30th in the country for using e-prescriptions, according to SureScripts, an operator of a major e-prescription network.
In North Texas, nearly 700 physicians use e-prescriptions, and about 800 pharmacies have the technology necessary to accept e-prescriptions. Proponents of the technology say it can increase efficiency and patient safety.
Despite the benefits, there are barriers to adoption, the Star-Telegram reports. For example, Texas physicians are prohibited under state law from electronically prescribing certain brand-name drugs and some controlled medications, such as Ritalin.
Joseph Schneider, chair of the health IT committee for the Texas Medical Association, said, "Physicians are not going to fire off electronic prescriptions if 40% of the time they're not going to be accepted and they're going to have to turn around and do it manually" (Jarvis, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4/29).
Source: iHealthBeat - http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2008/5/1/Texas-Physicians-Slow-To-Adopt-EPrescription-Technology.aspx?topicID=61#
Vermont
"Database would track prescriptions for addictive drugs..."
Source: Times Argus
Top
Virginia
"...The latest improvements to Virginia's Prescription Monitoring Program will be financed by a $400,000 federal grant announced Tuesday by Gov. Tim Kaine..."
Source: The Roanoke Times
West Virginia
Rural Health Center Begins e-Prescription Service
WBOY-TV - Clarksburg,WV,USA
Joe Manchin signed the bill allowing the practice, Marshall University is offering free e-prescription software to doctors in the state. ...
See all stories on this topic
Top
|
