The United States Senate passes The Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 99-1.
President Trump declared a State of Emergency in late 2017 in response to the opioid epidemic that was sweeping the U.S., demanding attention from the federal government. The epidemic is undeniable, and as of Monday, September 17, 2018, the U.S. Senate almost unanimously passed the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018.
The bipartisan bill was passed with a 99-1 vote, bringing the Senate together to join the fight to reduce opioid overdose/abuse. The bill touches on several aspects that contribute to the monumental rise of opioid abuse including the requirement to electronically prescribe controlled substances, placing limits on how many controlled substance prescriptions physicians can prescribe, as well as reporting to local prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP).
State governments have been slowly enacting mandates to electronic prescribing of controlled substances, but the federal government remained hands-off until now. The backing from the Senate catapults the efforts that local governments and technology vendors have been tirelessly working towards for years – improving patient safety and care.
What does this mean for physicians?
If the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 is passed by the U.S. government, which is projected to go into effect by the end of the year, physicians across the country will need to implement certified e-prescribing solution that is EPCS capable to meet the DEA’s two-factor authentication requirements and successfully write patients’ prescriptions.
To read more about the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018, click here.
To learn more about how your practice can prepare for the act before it goes into effect, click here.
With any additional questions, please call RXNT Product Specialists at 1-800-943-7968 option 3, or email us at [email protected].
