Automakers try to jump-start e-prescribing

While previous efforts to get doctors to prescribe electronically had mixed results, corporate influence could succeed in making the technology mainstream.

By Tyler Chin, AMNews staff. Feb. 28, 2005.

Advocates of electronic prescribing are hoping that the Big Three automakers can do what others have not -- get physicians to put down the prescription pad and adopt electronic prescribing.

On Feb. 9, General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler Corp., along with the United Auto Workers union and two insurers, launched the multimillion-dollar Southeast Michigan e-Prescribing Initiative to help up to 17,000 physicians in Michigan implement such systems in their offices.

Because of the companies' huge size and the billions they spend annually on health care for workers, retirees and their families, the automakers' initiative will be watched closely by other large employers, potentially giving e-prescribing a shot in the arm.

Before the Big Three's announcement, the Wayne County Medical Society, the Tri-County Osteopathic Assn. and the Detroit Medical Society were scheduled to sponsor an April 20 meeting to educate and encourage physicians to prescribe electronically. About 200 physicians are expected to attend the meeting. The societies would not comment on the Big Three's plan but did say they were supportive of e-prescribing.

"It's something we've been looking at for a while," said Adam Jablonowski, Wayne County's executive director. "I think we all recognize that there are benefits to be gained by the use of electronic prescribing."

For years, many have advocated e-prescribing to reduce medication errors and costs and as a key step in helping doctors transition to full-fledged electronic medical records. But many physicians have resisted prescribing electronically for various reasons. These include concerns about cost, the quality of technology, workflow issues, and a belief that employers, insurers and patients reap most of the benefits at physicians' expense. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, fewer than 10% of doctors prescribe electronically.