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February 09, 2005
Drug scripts go high-tech
Drug scripts go high-tech - 02/09/05
Wednesday, February 9, 2005
Drug scripts go high-tech
Automakers work with health providers to computerize process and cut costs.
By Sheri Hall / The Detroit News
Southeast Michigan e-Prescribing
What: An initiative to set up electronic prescription systems in doctors' offices
When: Pilot program began in January at Henry Ford Medical Group
Who: Up to 17,000 Michigan doctors can participate
Partners: General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., DaimlerChrysler AG, Henry Ford Health System, Health Alliance Plan, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Medco Health Solutions Inc., RxHub.
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Some Michigan doctors are replacing their prescription pads with computers as Detroit automakers launch a program to help as many as 17,000 doctors set up electronic prescribing systems in their offices.
The Southeast Michigan e-Prescribing Initiative is a multimillion-dollar collaboration with Henry Ford Health System, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, technology providers and Medco Health Solutions Inc. It will allow physicians to order prescription drugs using computers and hand-held electronic devices instead of using paper.
The initiative will eliminate a physician's handwriting as a potential source for error, alert doctors of potentially harmful drug interactions and reduce patient waiting time at the pharmacy. In the long run, the automakers hope it will help reduce health care costs, which threaten to cripple the industry.
"It's an effort to reduce costs, but also to improve quality," said Marcy Evans, a Ford Motor Co. spokeswoman. "Improving the safety of prescription drug care will reduce unnecessary costs."
Ford, General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG spent about $9 billion on health care benefits in 2003 -- a bill that's expected to keep growing. For GM, which is the largest provider of private health care in the United States, costs are expected to rise from $4.3 billion in 2003 and 2004, to $5.3 billion this year, with prescription drug costs rising by more than 15 percent.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimate that electronic prescriptions could eliminate up to 2 million medical errors a year. A study by Medco, which manages pharmacy benefits, found that doctors who used such systems had an 8 percent increase in dispensing generic drugs, which cost less than their brand-name equivalents.
St. Paul-based RxHub LLC, a computer company involved in the initiative, will route patient and pharmacy information between medical offices, the pharmacy benefit manager and the pharmacy.
Most major hospital chains already are using electronic medical records, but individual doctors have been slow to adopt the new technology because it's costly. Julie Novak, economic analyst for the Michigan State Medical Society, hopes the initiative will help doctors implement technology they couldn't otherwise afford.
Henry Ford Health System launched a pilot of the new program last month that includes 25 doctors from the Henry Ford Medical Group and support from its insurance arm, Health Alliance Plan.
Dr. David Allard, a family practice doctor in Royal Oak, started using the new system three weeks ago. He uses a Web browser to order prescriptions, which are sent directly to a local pharmacy chosen by the patient. The program includes a database of each patient's medical information, including allergies and chronic conditions, and it tells Allard which drugs are covered by the patient's insurance plans.
Last week, the system notified Allard when he prescribed a medication that wasn't covered by one patient's insurance plan. It gave him a list of alternative drugs that were covered and he was immediately able to choose another medicine.
"As long as the alternative is equivalent, I'm happy to prescribe what's covered," he said. "It saves the patient a lot of money or the running around it would take to switch prescriptions."
Henry Ford said about 100 doctors will be using the new technology by the end of March.
Blue Cross plans to begin offering the system to 6,400 physicians in its Blue Cross's Blue Preferred Plus network later this year.
You can reach Sheri Hall at (313) 223-4686 or shall@detnews.com.
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