Pharmacies Join the ePrescribe Florida Collaborative
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Sept. 10 /PRNewswire/ — Leading pharmacies in the state including Walgreens, CVS, Wal-Mart, Publix and Winn-Dixie are now part of the ePrescribe Florida Collaborative to promote a cooperative statewide effort toward the successful adoption of electronic prescribing capabilities by physicians and clinicians.
The Pharmacy Provider Services Corporation, one of the nation’s oldest and largest pharmacy services companies, has joined the effort to make Florida the leader in electronic prescribing. RxHub, which electronically routes up-to- date patient medication history and pharmacy benefit information to physicians and hospitals, has joined the collaborative steering committee.
Electronic prescribing is the use of health care technology to improve prescribing accuracy, patient safety and costs. It gives prescribers a secure means of electronically incorporating patient medical information with health plan formulary, patient eligibility and medication history at the point of care.
“Walgreens invented the electronic prescription 15 years ago and has been a strong supporter of its adoption in the health care industry ever since,” said Don Huonker, senior vice president, pharmacy services, Walgreens. “The latest effort in Florida will make the state a leader in advancing prescription safety, while ensuring patients get the most benefit from their drug therapy.”
“Publix Super Markets, Inc. welcomes the opportunity to participate in ePrescribe Florida,” said Dale Houston, R. Ph., manager of managed care, Publix. “We believe that increasing the utilization and acceptance of electronic prescriptions among health plans, prescribers and providers is important for not only the members of the ePrescribe Florida organization, but also for our customers. Currently, Publix Pharmacies support the technology and accept e-prescriptions at all of its locations.”
ePrescribe Florida is a collaborative framework of industry stakeholders working together to help accelerate physician adoption of electronic prescribing by fostering cooperation and coordination among prescribing constituents. Founded in December 2006, the first-of-its-kind Florida collaborative is pioneered by a steering committee and workgroup comprised of representatives from three leading health plans: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF), Humana, and AvMed.
“Everybody wins,” said Catherine Peper, vice president of health information technology, BCBSF, and chair, ePrescribe Florida. “Providers are in the middle, and what they want is vendor choice. That’s why it has been so important to see all theses stakeholders willing to come together for the common cause of accelerating the adoption of critical technology.”
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida is a leader in Florida’s health industry. BCBSF and its subsidiaries serve more than 8.7 million people. Since 1944, the company has been dedicated to meeting the diverse needs of all those it serves by offering an array of choices. BCBSF is a not-for-profit, policyholder-owned, tax-paying mutual company. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., BCBSF is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information concerning BCBSF, please see its Web site at http://www.bcbsfl.com/.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida
CONTACT: Mark S. Wright, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida,+1-904-905-6935, cell +1-904-233-3481, mark.wright@bcbsfl.com
Web site: http://www.bcbsfl.com/