The new program, called Get Connected, is now used by 17 different medical associations, bringing physicians to an online portal — www.GetRxConnected.org — that provides a step-by-step process to transition from paper-based to electronic prescribing.
Under the Medicare incentive program, which begins in January, qualifying providers will receive a 2 percent payment in 2009 and 2010, a 1 percent payment in 2011 and 2012, and a 0.5 percent payment in 2013.
In addition, the HITECH provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act offer incentive payments of up to $44,000 a year from 2011 to 2014 for installing and using electronic medical records, including e-prescribing.
To qualify for Medicare’s incentive program, the physician must install an e-prescribing program that has the following attributes:
1. Generates a medication list;
2. Selects medications, send e-prescriptions based on applicable standards and warn of undesirable or unsafe situations;
3. Lists lower-cost, therapeutically appropriate alternatives; and
4. Shows formulary or tiered-formulary medications and patient eligibility and authorization requirements from the patient’s drug plan.
Read the AAOS’ release on the e-prescribing program.
