SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Feb. 13, 2006–From the floor of the
2006 HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society)
Annual Conference and Exhibition, Allscripts (Nasdaq:MDRX), the
leading provider of clinical software, connectivity and information
solutions that physicians use to improve healthcare, today announced
that it has been selected to participate with two research teams
studying electronic prescribing standards through pilot tests funded
by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).
The projects will be administered jointly by the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Agency for Healthcare
Research and Quality (AHRQ). In total, $6 million has been allocated
to fund cooperative agreements to test initial standards for
electronic prescribing in part with the Medicare Modernization Act
(MMA), which encourages health plans to support physicians use of
electronic prescribing and adoption of standards to promote
interoperability.
One e-prescribing pilot project will be led by the RAND
Corporation and will take place within the New Jersey E-Prescribing
Action Coalition and includes Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New
Jersey, and the electronic prescription routing companies RxHub and
SureScripts; Caremark; Walgreen’s retail pharmacies; and Point of Care
Partners, a consulting group that has led standards development
efforts for electronic prescribing. The project will be evaluating a
number of standards including medication history, standards for
formulary and benefit information received from payers and the use of
standardized formats for patient instructions and drug vocabularies.
Allscripts is also collaborating with researchers from Brown
University and Midwestern University as well as SureScripts to test
the initial standards for electronic prescribing across various
Allscripts client sites in the States of Tennessee and Nevada,
including Sierra Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:SIE), the largest
managed care provider in the State of Nevada. The pilot will evaluate
how the standards work in a variety of practice settings and
geographic areas and how prescriber characteristics influence adoption
of electronic prescribing technology.
Allscripts provides their electronic prescribing solution to the
company’s medical group subsidiary, Southwest Medical Associates
(SMA).
“We are excited to be a part of the government’s movement towards
the adoption of healthcare information technology,” said Anthony
Marlon, M.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sierra. Since
adopting the Allscripts solution, our physicians at SMA have utilized
an interoperable electronic prescribing product that has changed the
way healthcare is delivered to our patients. We look forward to
sharing our results with the government as they prepare to define the
standards for electronic prescribing.”
The duration of the HHS electronic prescribing pilot is one year.
The program will test the transmission of the patient’s prescription
and the ability for prescribers to view the patient’s drug benefits,
including formulary information and drug history and the ability to
transmit prior authorization transactions requests.
“Together with our clients we are helping the federal government
determine the necessary standards for Medicare’s new prescription drug
benefit plan, an important step in improving the way care is delivered
in the United States,” said Glen Tullman, Chief Executive Officer of
Allscripts.
About Allscripts
Allscripts is the leading provider of clinical software,
connectivity and information solutions that physicians use to improve
healthcare. The Company’s business groups provide unique solutions
that inform, connect and transform healthcare. The Clinical Solutions
Group’s award-winning clinical software applications include
Electronic Health Record, e-prescribing and document imaging
solutions. Additionally, Allscripts provides clinical product
education and connectivity solutions for physicians and patients
through its Physicians Interactive(TM) Group and medical fulfillment
services through its Medication Services Group. To learn more, visit
Allscripts on the Web at www.allscripts.com.
This announcement may contain forward-looking statements about
Allscripts that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are
developed by combining currently available information with Allscripts
beliefs and assumptions. Forward-looking statements do not guarantee
future performance. Because Allscripts cannot predict all of the risks
and uncertainties that may affect it, or control the ones it does
predict, Allscripts’ actual results may be materially different from
the results expressed in its forward-looking statements. For a more
complete discussion of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions that
may affect Allscripts, see the Company’s 2004 Annual Report on Form
10-K, available through the Web site maintained by the Securities and
Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov.
CONTACT: Allscripts
Dan Michelson, 312-506-1217
dan.michelson@allscripts.com
SOURCE: Allscripts