Louisville, KY, Aug. 14, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Appriss Health, provider of the most comprehensive platform for opioid stewardship and substance use disorder (SUD) in the U.S., today announced that the Florida prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) is now sharing data with the Military Health System (MHS) PDMP. Appriss Health is the provider of the Florida PDMP, known as E-FORCSE® (Electronic-Florida Online Reporting of Controlled Substance Evaluation Program), and partners with Express Scripts – one of the country’s leading pharmacy benefit managers – to support the Military Health System nationwide.
The MHS PDMP helps improve the safe prescribing of controlled substances to patients and enables data sharing between Military Treatment Facilities (MTFs) and non-military health care providers. It allows community-based prescribers at clinics, hospitals and local pharmacies to determine whether a Schedule II-V medication was prescribed to their patient by another prescriber, including one at a Military Treatment Facility.
Statewide in Florida, Appriss Health provides its PMP AWARxE prescription monitoring solution and the NarxCare clinical decision support platform, prescriber reports, and advanced analytics. In addition, Appriss Health facilitates integration of E-FORCSE PDMP information into electronic health records with PMP Gateway. Through a partnership with the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, Appriss Health enables E-FORCSE and 50 other PDMPs to securely and efficiently share interstate data, at zero cost to the state and U.S. taxpayers, via PMP InterConnect®.
The Military Health System has participated in state PDMPs by reporting information related to Schedule II-V medications dispensed to military members and their dependents from community and retail pharmacies, as well as the Express Scripts Home Delivery pharmacy. However, until its collaboration with Appriss Health, Express Scripts and the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, the MHS was unable to share similar information from MTF pharmacies due to challenges with differing data reporting requirements in each state.
Florida legislators Rep. Cary Pigman R-55 and Sen. Ben Albritton R-26 co-sponsored Florida House Bill-375, which made the change to the PDMP statutes to authorize the Florida Department of Health to share PDMP data with the MHS. The new law went into effect July 1, 2019.
“Florida has the fifth largest population of active and reserve members of the military in the nation, currently numbering more than 92,000. It’s vitally important for clinicians and other personnel to have a complete picture of prescribing information for service men and women to help combat the potential risk of prescription drug misuse and addiction,” said Pigman, an emergency medicine physician, a physician in the Army Reserve and vice chairman of the House of Representatives Health & Human Services Committee. “With more than 100,000 healthcare providers in Florida using E-FORCSE, the ability to search the Military Health System PDMP will help protect and save more lives.”
With the addition of Florida, the MHS PDMP is now sharing critical PDMP data and analytics with 39 PDMPs throughout the United States and U.S. territories, with the goal of enabling data-sharing among all 54 PDMPs across the country. Additionally, E-FORCSE currently shares PDMP data across state lines with 17 PDMPs.
“We are pleased to partner with the Florida Department of Health, the Military Health System and Express Scripts to enable PDMP data-sharing that helps address and treat substance use disorder for our servicemen and women and their families,” said Rob Cohen, President of Appriss Health. “This new connection helps civilian clinicians make more informed decisions before prescribing an opioid and ultimately a measurable, positive impact on the opioid crisis.”
About Appriss Health
Appriss Health provides the nation’s most comprehensive platform for opioid stewardship and the early identification, prevention, and management of substance use disorder (SUD). We provide state government agencies with the most advanced repository of controlled substance dispensing data and deliver real-time clinical decision support, critical insights, and interventions to physicians, pharmacists, and care team members. Our solutions help prescribers and dispensers assess and manage clinical risk by providing access to critical information at the point of care for hundreds of millions of patient encounters each year. Appriss Health provides the platform for PDMPs and access to non-PDMP data, analytics, tools, and resources from PDMPs, across state lines, and integrated within care team workflows. Sharing #knowledgeforgood, our solutions are improving patient safety and outcomes. For more information, please visit www.apprisshealth.com.
About Express Scripts
Express Scripts is a health care opportunity company. Empowered by our legacy as an industry innovator, we dare to imagine — and deliver — a better health care system with greater choice, predictability, affordability and improved outcomes. From pharmacy and medical benefits management, to specialty pharmacy care and everything in between – we uncover opportunities to make health care better.
We stand alongside our clients and partners, collaborating to develop personalized solutions that make a meaningful difference in the lives of those we serve, whenever and wherever it is needed. We believe health care can do more.
We are Champions For BetterSM.
Express Scripts, part of Cigna, unlocks new value in pharmacy, medical, and beyond to further total health for all.