HID Global, a worldwide provider in trusted identity solutions, shared its expertise in electronic prescriptions at the opioid policy hearing that was conducted by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). HID is urging policymakers to address the opioid abuse crisis in the United States by linking electronic prescriptions for controlled substances (EPCS) with prescription drug monitoring program databases. Electronic prescriptions of painkillers (opioids), such as oxycodone, morphine and methadone, will help modernize public health practices.
The country’s opioid abuse crisis creates a demand for a new level of trust to be injected into the entire process of doctors’ prescribing painkillers. E-prescriptions with digital certificates would accomplish this goal.
“Electronic prescriptions for controlled substances would greatly reduce fraudulent prescriptions, doctor shopping and, ultimately, the opioid abuse epidemic,” said Brad Jarvis, Vice President of IAM Solutions with HID Global. “We believe that electronic prescriptions would curb the over-prescribing of opioids and prevent the highly addictive drugs from falling into the wrong hands. People’s lives will be saved.”
Additional benefits of electronic prescriptions include automated tracking, improved risk assessments, increased efficiencies and better communication. EPCS transactions that are digitally signed by prescribers with digital certificates are non-reputable and secure from the prescriber through to the pharmacy that fulfills the prescription.
“Some electronic healthcare record applications have the ability today to pull state prescription drug monitoring program data at the time of an EPCS transaction, making prescription monitoring program compliance simpler for providers while exponentially increasing the effectiveness of these programs,” said Jerry Cox, a subject matter expert on digital certificates within HID Global’s IdenTrust business. Cox testified at the FDA’s Opioid Policy Steering Committee meeting in Silver Spring, MD.
HID’s
IdenTrust business supplies digital certificates, which are used in electronic prescription transactions, among a wide range of other applications. IdenTrust is recognized by government agencies, global financial institutions and corporations around the world. IdenTrust products enable organizations to effectively manage the risks associated with identity authentication, work interoperably with countries around the world, minimize investment in creating their own policies and legal frameworks, and ensure trust in the identity of a person or thing. Recently, HID’s IdenTrust business was recognized as the fastest-growing certification authority in the world.