Security Prescription Law Fix Heads to Governor's Desk for Signature Implementation of the new state law that requires security prescription forms to have a uniquely serialized number law will be postponed, thanks to a legislative fix heading to Governor Newsom’s desk. Flawed implementation this past January caused mass confusion, leaving pharmacies unable to fill prescriptions and patients being refused necessary medications. The California Legislature on Thursday passed AB 149 (Assemblymembers Cooper, Arambula and Low) to postpone implementation of the new law, which was intended to improve the security of physician prescription pads as a solution to the opioid crisis. This bill will delay ... March 6, 2019 Advocacy, Drug Prescribing/Dispensing advocacy, Drug Prescribing/Dispensing 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA Announces New Statewide Effort to Promote Physician Wellness As the delivery of health care undergoes fundamental shifts and the rate of burnout among physicians continues to rise, physician wellness and professional fulfillment have become hot topics throughout the health care community – and for good reason. In a recent Medscape survey, nearly two-thirds of U.S. doctors said they felt burned out, depressed or both. More troubling still, one-third of respondents said such feelings affected their relationships with patients. Burnout can erode the quality of patient care and decrease patient satisfaction. It can also limit patient access to care, as physicians experiencing burnout ... January 18, 2019 CMA, Physician Wellness CMA, Physician Wellness 0 0 Comment Read More »
Joint Statement Regarding Secure Prescription Forms Please click the link below to view a joint statement from the California Department of Justice, California State Board of Pharmacy, and the Medical Board of California regarding a new law, AB 1753 (Low, Chapter 479), which became effective on January 1, 2019. http://www.mbc.ca.gov/Licensees/Prescribing/AB1753JointStatement.pdf January 14, 2019 Drug Prescribing/Dispensing Drug Prescribing/Dispensing 0 0 Comment Read More »
Opioid Prescription Restrictions at Walmart and CVS Pharmacies In 2018, Walmart (including Sam’s Club) and CVS Caremark implemented dosage and duration corporate policies to restrict opioid prescriptions filled at their pharmacies. Specifically: Walmart restricted initial opioid prescriptions for acute pain to no more than seven days and 50 morphine milligram equivalents (MME) CVS Caremark restricted initial opioid prescriptions for an acute condition to a seven-day supply and 90 MME, although prescribers may request a prior authorization for higher doses up to 200 MME/day Physicians have also reported being asked for extensive medical documentation such as treatment agreements, tried/failed ... November 1, 2018 Public Health 0 0 Comment Read More »
The paper chart holdouts Robert Lending, MD, describes himself as a “computer dinosaur.” The Tucson, Ariz., internist and clinical lipidologist gets cash from bank tellers rather than ATMs. He doesn’t make online purchases or use social media. And he doesn’t use electronic health records. Lending, 65, calls EHRs “the most dangerous, ridiculous piece of equipment I could ever have conceived of,” adding that his colleagues envy him for the peace of mind and extra time he enjoys from using paper charts. “You can’t believe how angry they are at computers, at the whole system,” he ... October 22, 2018 EHR, Healthcare 0 0 Comment Read More »
