Dive Brief:
- As emerging technologies becomes an integral part of every aspect of the healthcare industry, EPCS—the practice of prescribing controlled substances via electronic means—has skyrocketed, according to a blog post on the ONC's HealthIT website.
- One of the key benefits of this practice is to reduce the theft of Schedule II drugs, which the HHS Inspector General has tagged as a major concern, having tracked $25 million in fraudulent Medicare reimbursements for controlled substances dating back to 2009. Using EPCS, doctors, pharmacies and patients can more closely track these prescriptions, helping to ensure they are delivered only to those under a doctor's care.
- The study featured in the blog post revealed that the number of e-prescribers grew from 225 in 2012 to more than 5,000 by the end of 2013. Meanwhile, only one in 10 pharmacies were equipped to handle e-prescribing in July of 2012, compared to three in 10 in December 2013. And July 2012 saw 1,535 e-prescriptions filled, with that number increasing to 52,423 by the end of the following year.
Dive Insight:
Those in the trenches of the healthcare industry don't have to be told about the crisis surrounding the misuse, abuse and theft of controlled substances. The CDC reports that deaths from drug overdoses have increased 117%, making the management of controlled substances a high priority for HHS.
Using EPCS and other related technologies, as long as due attention is paid to access and security, can be an important tool to help reduce overdoses, deaths and the chilling effect those concerns have on prescribing these powerful drugs.