PDMP Changes 2021 – The Requirements Shaping Healthcare Today and Tomorrow

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Prescription drug monitoring programs, or PDMPs, can help providers ensure they’re aware of patients who are either addicted or at risk of becoming addicted to potentially dangerous or fatal prescription drugs.

Let’s take a look at updates to mandated PDMP programs and explore how they’ll impact that future of healthcare.

What Are PDMP Programs?

Particularly in response to the growing opioid epidemic in the United States, PDMPs have taken on additional significance in the healthcare landscape.

At their core, PDMPs are electronic databases that track controlled substance prescriptions at the state level, offering healthcare providers and authorities key information needed to better understand patient risk and ensure what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls a “nimble and targeted response.”

When armed with information about a particular patient’s risk, providers and physicians can provide targeted care that is less likely to result in substance abuse or other harmful effects on the patient.

The Requirements Surrounding PDMP Participation

On Jan. 1 of 2022, the SUPPORT Act will require every controlled substance prescription (as denoted by Medicare’s Part D drug plan) to be transmitted electronically.

The CDC is mulling over a potential delay to this requirement, though providers can be certain that it is coming at some point to make electronic tracking of patient history and prescriptions simpler.

At the state level, providers and physicians operate under different PDMP regulations based on the state they operate in. For example, many states, such as Texas, have both PDMP and electronic prescribing of controlled substances (EPCS) mandates, while others, such as Minnesota, have no regulations at all.

Many states without current mandates are working to enact them or have already passed pending mandates that will go into effect at different times. To ensure you’re up to date with your state’s current requirements, you can find an appropriate contact via PDMP TTAC.

The Benefits of PDMP Programs for Patients and Physicians

For patients, the benefits of a PDMP are clear. It makes it simpler for those who treat them to understand their medical history and engage in appropriate prescribing behavior, which ultimately keeps the patient safer.

This benefit works both ways. The goal of every healthcare provider is to provide the best care possible and ensure a positive outcome for patients, and gaining insight into every aspect of a patient’s history and risk is critical to doing so.

Further, state PDMP programs are used to actively inform interventions and proactive care decisions on a statewide basis, and they’re becoming simpler to use than ever before. Particularly when integrated with a robust electronic health record (EHR) solution, PDMPs can be streamlined without sacrificing the benefits of greater identification and the implementation of practices aimed at a better response to the current opioid pandemic and beyond.

For a partner committed to helping your practice meet PDMP standards and regulations, contact us today.