PDMP Update: Kareo Makes PDMP and EHR Integration Easier than Ever

The healthcare regulatory landscape is constantly evolving, with new mandates designed to make care safer and better for patients — with providers sometimes scrambling to keep up. With the opioid crisis, prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) are increasingly common, and many providers are now tasked with consulting their state’s program as part of their prescription workflow. How can providers streamline their workflows, stay ahead of the regulations, and continue to offer exceptional patient care? Kareo, a Tebra company, has the answer.

What is a PDMP?

Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) have been around in one iteration or another since 1918. In their current form, they’re state-created electronic databases that collect, monitor, and analyze pharmacy-submitted prescription and dispensing data. They’re meant to reduce prescription drug abuse and diversion, and can also help to improve patient care.

What are the current PDMP regulations?

PMDP mandates are evolving, and while not every state currently has a PDMP program or requires that providers check theirs, many do — and more are moving in that direction. Today, 45 states require prescribers to query their state’s PDMP database before they write a prescription to gain a better overview of their patient’s drug history and help mitigate the opioid crisis.

But in states that require providers to check their local PDMP before prescribing, doing so is an extra step in the prescription workflow. Without the ability to see a patient’s full drug history within their EHR, clinicians must log into a separate system to review it. This results in a disjointed, inefficient workflow for providers, as well as a high-risk and negative experience for patients.

In Illinois, all EHR systems must interface with the Illinois Prescription Drug Monitoring Program as of January 1, 2022, with any who don’t now facing penalties. While at this time Illinois is the only state with such a requirement, more are expected to follow in the future.

For providers who are unprepared, this requirement might seem to be an extra burden in an already-complicated regulatory landscape. But those who prepare in advance and integrate their PDMP and EHR will be not only well-positioned to comply as mandates come into effect, but also able to offer patients faster, better, and more comprehensive care.

How can Kareo help?

As of July 28, 2022, Kareo now offers a Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) integration in 46 states to enable providers to seamlessly access PDMP reports directly within their EHR.

Kareo Clinical’s PDMP integration makes users’ state databases accessible right from their ePrescribing workflow — and three times faster than in a traditional PDMP lookup, according to data from DrFirst. The integration alerts clinicians to on-file drug allergies, interactions, and formularies, and makes sure that a prescription is the one that’s best for patients both medically and financially. It makes it possible for providers to intervene at the earliest signs of substance abuse, creating an opportunity for better patient care. It also makes it easier than ever to meet DEA, state, federal, and mandated-query requirements — now and in the future.

Ready to make queuing your PDMP easier than ever?

Contact a Kareo representative to learn more.