The Health and Human Services Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration are reviewing the feedback they have received on DEA proposed rule on e-prescribing for controlled substances, but the final rule might not emerge this year.

DEA published the proposed rule earlier this year, which would impose security requirements for e-prescribing of controlled substances. A public comment period expired Sept. 25. Groups representing physicians, pharmacies and health information technology vendors have expressed concern that the rule as currently written could impede adoption of e-prescribing.

Kerry Weems, acting administrator of HHS; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said DEA and HHS are reviewing the comments. Speaking at CMS; National E-Prescribing Conference in Boston this week, Weems said the goal is to address DEA concerns while creating a rule that doesn’t provide a barrier to e-prescribing.

Jodi Daniel, director of the Office of Policy and Research in the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, said the final rule might not be on DEA to-do list for this calendar year. The presidential election could also push action into next year.

The change in administration…may slow things down; said Daniel, who also spoke at the conference.

Meanwhile, a Medicare incentive program that will initially provide a 2 percent bonus to physicians who adopt e-prescribing goes into effect Jan. 1, 2009.

Some experts say Deal’s current prohibition against e-prescribing controlled substances has blocked broader acceptance of the technology. The situation compels doctors who use e-prescribing to maintain a paper-based system for controlled substances and an electronic system for other drugs.

To help spur use of the technology, the eHealth Initiative released A Clinician’s Guide to Electronic Prescribing at the conference. The organization compiled the guide in cooperation with the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the Medical Group Management Association and the Center for Improving Medication Management

Above article published on http://www.govhealthit.com/newsitem.aspx?tid=77&nid=69406

New York’s statewide health information technology strategy envisions widespread use of health IT tools by clinicians and consumers. This prototype will demonstrate secure and accurate transmission of prescription benefit and prescription history information, and prescription routing between electronic medical records (EMRs), the Surescripts network, and pharmacies and payers, utilizing technical services and standards for health information exchange included in the ICW HealthCare Connector installed in each provider’s practice location.

Surescripts (formed by the merger of SureScripts and RxHub in 2008) connects the nation’s payers, prescribers and pharmacies for the safe and secure electronic exchange of prescriptions and prescription information.

“SHIN-NY’s vision for New Yorkers aligns with Surescripts’ vision for all healthcare providers — secure, electronic access to prescription information that can save patients’ lives, improve efficiency and reduce the cost of healthcare,” said Rick Ratliff, president, Surescripts Virginia division. “The Surescripts network, coupled with ICW’s technology, will be a significant first step towards statewide access to prescription history data across NYS.”

Rachel Block, executive director of NYeC explains the importance of this project, “SHIN-NY was formed based on a statewide goal to improve the quality and affordability of healthcare for all New Yorkers. Information technology is a key ingredient in achieving our goals. By partnering with ICW, a proven technology provider, and Surescripts, the nation’s largest e-prescribing network, we will benefit from experience and will receive the guidance necessary for creating a fully interoperable, statewide health information network. And from here, we can address issues relative to population health management, drug efficacy, and statewide resource planning.”

Jeremy Coote, CEO of InterComponentWare Inc. notes, “New York’s technical policies and standards can be leveraged by ICW to enable physicians’ access to the Surescripts Network.” Coote adds, “The key to the success of this initiative lies in the governance and trust established by NYeC, combined with ICW’s ability to provide consistent and secure access in the providers’ office.”

The prototype project is in its initial phases and is on track for general implementation in late 2009.

About InterComponentWare, Inc.

InterComponentWare AG (ICW) is a leading international eHealth specialist with locations in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria, USA, and Canada. ICW delivers an interoperable eHealth infrastructure and a range of end-user applications for healthcare professionals and their patients. ICW technology enables organizations to extend their existing information systems, connect with diverse systems, and create a secure patient health record based on aggregated data. The interoperability and health information exchange components of its solutions make aggregated data a reality.

About Surescripts

Surescripts is the result of a 2008 merger between the country’s two leading health information networks: RxHub and Surescripts. Surescripts gives healthcare providers secure, electronic access to prescription information that can save their patients’ lives, improve efficiency and reduce the cost of healthcare for all. Available during emergencies or routine care, the Surescripts network is used every day by thousands of physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and other prescribers across all 50 states. The Surescripts network connects these prescribers to all of the nation’s major chain pharmacies, the nation’s leading payers and independent pharmacies nationwide.

About NYeC:

The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) was founded in 2006 by health care leaders across the state, with leadership and support from the New York State Department of Health, based on a shared vision of the urgent need to improve health care quality, safety and efficiency in New York. NYeC is a public-private partnership that will serve as a focal point for health care stakeholders to build consensus on state HIT policy priorities, and to collaborate on state and regional HIT implementation efforts, in order to improve the organization, delivery and outcomes of health care for all New Yorkers. NYeC will become a trusted, independent voice that can reflect a diverse array of interests and perspectives on key policies and standards to ensure that HIT implementation efforts are successful, and to realize the state’s return on investment under HEAL-NY and other funding mechanisms.

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http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/146405.php