Have you felt slowed down by increased regulations on prescribing?
The effects of the opioid crisis are real. 5.6 million Americans use prescription drugs non-medically every month. And it shows: every day an average of 130 Americans die from opioid overdoses, 46 of which can be attributed to prescription painkillers. Accordingly, legislators and private organizations have taken steps to address the impact of opioids. As prescribers, though, these rules have an effect on their everyday work.
Overprescription has resulted in rather expensive punishments for some, from providers to drug manufacturers. In this context, the need to comply is even more glaring for well-meaning prescribers. Even though 1% of prescribers prescribe half of all opioids, the ability to comply exists.
One way is through the prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP). These are databases created at the state level to track patient’s drug history. PDMPs are nothing new (New York has had one since 1918!), but in the wake of the opioid crisis they are becoming ubiquitous, and, in 45 states, mandatory.
Prescribers are required to check their state’s PDMP database before prescribing controlled substances. Further, several states mandate e-prescribing (eRx) systems. To manage all these requirements, it is useful and necessary that providers find and embrace user-friendly, all-in-one systems that simplify this compliance, NOT complicate it even further.
AZZLY® partners with DrFirst® to provide AZZLY® Rize™ users with Rcopia™, the #1 e-prescribing, medication history, and adherence monitoring solution in the country. In addition to complying with any state mandates, prescribers with integrated e-prescribing get the following four benefits:
- Use a single workflow for prescribing all medications.
- Prevent prescription drug abuse by making it easy to spot overprescribing.
- Prevent “doctor shopping” by making it easy to see a patient’s controlled substance prescriptions from other providers.
- Prevent prescription fraud by eliminating paper prescription pads that can be stolen, altered, or forged.
E-prescribing with AZZLY and DrFirst gives users integrated access to their state’s PDMP, without ever leaving the e-prescribing workflow — no need to open a new browser. AZZLY e-prescribing is guaranteed to be secure, using EPCS Gold℠, a groundbreaking and DEA/NIST/Surescripts-approved functionality to Rcopia.
The result is increased convenience for behavioral health and addiction treatment physicians, as well as their patients. Prescribers can have peace of mind and save time on prescribing, all in the same system with their electronic health record. Providers can spend less time fulfilling state mandates and invest it back into their patients.
These measures are tested and evidence-based. All in 2010-2013:
- In Tennessee, the mandate for prescribers to consult their PDMP before prescribing painkillers led to a 36% drop in patients “doctor shopping” for addictive drugs.
- In New York, the PDMP mandate resulted in a 75% drop in doctor shopping.
- In Florida, they saw a 50% decrease in overdose deaths from oxycodone.
Similarly, the benefit of integrating these features into the EHR has provable benefits for providers. EPCS users experience a 67% time savings using EPCS with integrated PDMP access.
Would you like to learn more about single sign on e-prescribing and PDMP access with AZZLY® Rize™? Our software is an all-in-one EHR/RCM/PM solution for addiction treatment and behavioral healthcare, and part of providing that premiere solution is understanding the needs of providers in this industry. Our AZZLY representatives can tell you more about your states EPCS or PDMP mandates and demonstrate the benefits of AZZLY Rize to the specific programs your organization provides. Fill out this short form to speak with one of our EHR experts and take the first step.
