State starts up reboot of Rx monitoring system
The state yesterday launched an improved version of its prescription monitoring program, which will give doctors more up-to-date and complete data on patients’ medication histories, and will require doctors to check more frequently before handing out scripts for opioids.
“As we work to bend the trend on the opioid epidemic, today’s new PMP launch will make it easier and faster for prescribers to use the system and make more informed clinical decisions based on data,” Gov. Charlie Baker said in a statement.
“This system will provide prescriber performance benchmarks, create transparency and raise awareness as we work collaboratively to fight this public health crisis.”
The Massachusetts Prescription Awareness Tool, or “MassPAT,” will be easier to access than the current system — which is only used by 63 percent of prescribers, according to DPH — and will provide more insight into a patient’s background, allowing data to be shared across states.
The new rules go into effect Oct. 15. Doctors will have to check the program each time they prescribe a Schedule II or III drug, which is the most addictive group of opioids. In the current system, doctors are only required to check the database the first time a medication in that class is prescribed.
The program allows physicians to see a record of each potentially addictive substance prescribed to a patient, including narcotics and stimulants.
According to Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders, doctors are registering for the program at a rapid pace — there were 16,100 signed up by Aug. 12, and as of yesterday that number had risen to 31,909.
The average response time after a search is 1.5 seconds, DPH said.
Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett, a family medicine doctor at Boston Medical Center who sees many patients suffering from addiction, said the new program will be “much less clunky” and provide better information for doctors. The old site, she said, was sometimes as much as one month behind in available data.
She added that within the past month, she has received several more reminders from both the state and the hospital to register for the program than she did for the previous system.
“I’m hopeful this will be better for patients and providers,” Barnett said. “People, including myself, on the front line of pain delivery systems are in a real bind. The more support we can get, the better.”