Proposed E-Prescribing Regulations: A Windfall for Consultants and Software Vendors?

This is what the DEA is recommending for their report on E-Prescribing. The portion about confirming the physician’s authority though is not a bad idea at all in view of the Medicare Fraud this week involving “dead doctors” who were still prescribing medical equipment, an audit process that one might have thought should have been in place a long time ago. The tricky part comes to item number 3 below, and this is where the software vendor programs and offerings come in. BD

*Physicians must undergo "identity proofing" processes conducted by an authority such as a hospital credentialing office or a state licensing authority;

* Pharmacies must confirm weekly that the physician's authority to prescribe has not been revoked, must have system audit controls in place, and must engage auditors to audit those system controls;

* All participants in the e-prescribing process must maintain records of the transactions, with off-site backups; and

* Security breaches involving e-prescription information must be reported to the DEA.