5 Ways That e-Prescribing Benefits Your Practice

By Matthew J. Hawkins, CEO of Vitera Healthcare Solutions

E-prescribing adoption is not only rewarded, but failing to do so is beginning to be penalized. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), physicians who don’t adopt e-prescribing when eligible will face penalties starting in 2012. Eligible physicians are subject to a 1.5 percent Medicare payment reduction based on their 2013 Medicare Part B fee schedule amounts during the year. The penalty is 2 percent in 2014.

Patients want the convenience that e-prescriptions bring. As a society, we are entering a phase of patient empowerment – fueled by access to information, improved care and convenience. A physician’s decision to e-prescribe demonstrates that the doctor is up to date on their medical methodologies for treating patients and is willing to make changes to benefit them. Physicians who e-prescribe enable patients to take full advantage of doctor-pharmacy technology, gain important insight into prescription information and select the location where patients want their prescription filled, so they can conveniently pick it up. These important capabilities benefit the patient and strengthen patients’ view of their physician’s technology practices.