Five leading physician organizations have launched an e-prescribing push called "Get Connected" that aims at reducing billions of dollars in phone bills.
They made the announcement at a Tuesday morning Capitol Hill event during which Massachusetts was named the leading e-prescribing state for the second year in a row.
The Get Connected effort aims to help physicians meet the Medicare deadline while increasing prescription accuracy and medication safety and reducing the $8 billion phone bill caused by paper and fax prescription, the physician groups said.
The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American College of Cardiology (ACC), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) are launching an online portal - www.GetRxConnected.com - where physicians can follow a step-by-step process designed to help them transition from paper-based prescribing to e-prescribing.
Created under the auspices of The Center for Improving Medication Management, GetRxConnected.com contains information and guidance for an estimated 150,000 prescribers across the country who are using electronic medical record systems and other clinical software to fax prescriptions to pharmacies.
Computer-generated faxing of prescriptions not only prevents physicians from achieving the gains in practice efficiency and patient safety associated with e-prescribing, but starting on Jan. 1, 2009, all computer-generated prescriptions covered by the Medicare Part D program must be transmitted electronically and not via fax.
Computer-generated, faxed prescriptions will not be in compliance with the new Medicare Modernization Act.
Through GetRxConnected.com, physicians and their staffs can find out if their existing software is compliant with the new Medicare regulations and can receive a free, personalized report to help them request an electronic connection to pharmacies through their vendor.
"Of the nearly 40 percent of AAFP members with fully adopted EHRs, less than 30 percent are sending prescriptions electronically today," said Steven E. Waldren, MD, director of the AAFP's Center for Health IT. "With a targeted effort, many of those users could quickly capitalize on the quality and efficiency value of e-prescribing."
"E-prescribing is a tool that can help pediatricians enter the electronic age for clinical care," said AAP member Joseph H. Schneider, MD, "It makes sense because it improves patient safety, it's relatively easy to use and it's low-cost."