Following Government OK, E-Prescribing of Controlled Substances Surges

Electronic prescribing software vendor DrFirst, which integrates with many inpatient and ambulatory clinical information systems, reports strong growth in e-prescribing of controlled substances during 2012 after the federal government approved the practice.


Electronic prescribing software vendor DrFirst, which integrates with many inpatient and ambulatory clinical information systems, reports strong growth in e-prescribing of controlled substances during 2012 after the federal government approved the practice.

The number of pharmacies accepting electronic scripts for controlled substances rose from 22 in February 2012 to 11,778 in December, and now has surpassed 13,000, according to the vendor. That represents about 18 percent of the nation’s pharmacies.

DrFirst had a 428 percent increase in the number of controlled substance e-prescriptions issued using its software during the last half of 2012, with “active use” in 40 states. A vendor-published white paper, “The Evolving Landscape for Electronic Prescribing of Controlled Substances--an Industry Briefing,” is available here.