more than 90 percent of the 2.5 million electronic prescriptions
written in the state of Michigan in 2007 came from doctors within the
seven counties of the Southeast Michigan ePrescribing Initiative
(SEMI) -- helping drive Michigan to fifth in the nation in the
adoption and utilization of ePrescribing technology. The findings are
part of the Electronic Prescribing Progress Report, a national
assessment of the adoption of electronic prescribing in the United
States, published by SureScripts, operator of the Pharmacy Health
Information Exchange(TM).
SEMI is a coalition that includes General Motors, Ford Motor Company,
Chrysler LLC, the United Auto Workers, Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Michigan, Health Alliance Plan, Henry Ford Medical Group, Medco Health
Solutions, Inc., CVS Caremark Corporation, RxHub, LLC and
SureScripts(R).
"The SEMI program has played an integral role in advancing the
adoption of electronic prescribing technology in the state of
Michigan," said Karl Dalal, Director of Healthcare, Insurance and HR
Programs, Ford Motor Company. "Electronic prescribing clearly leads to
safer pharmacy care and lower costs for physician practices,
employers, and consumers; advancing the adoption of this technology
will continue to play a key role in treating the ills of the
antiquated paper-based healthcare system in America."
Michigan received the Safe-Rx(TM) Award for finishing 5th among the
top 10 ePrescribing states in the nation. Safe-Rx Awards are given
each year to the 10 states that transmit the most electronic
prescriptions as a percentage of the total number of prescriptions
eligible for electronic routing over the Pharmacy Health Information
Exchange(TM) operated by SureScripts. Michigan has been rising in the
ranks since the Safe-Rx awards began in 2006. Last year, the Wolverine
state came in sixth nationally, and in 2006 was 10th in the nation in
use of the technology.
Doctors: Safer prescribing, better care come with electronic prescribing
A recent survey of physicians in the SEMI program revealed that
improved patient safety and quality of care topped the list of key
benefits of the technology. According to the survey, conducted by
HaldyMcIntosh & Associates:
-- Three out of four prescribers believe strongly that ePrescribing
improves safety for their patients. -- Nearly 70 percent of
respondents say it improves the quality of care. -- More than 80
percent of all prescriptions written by those surveyed are currently
written electronically; four of 10 practices now only write
ePrescriptions. -- More than 70 percent saw a reduction in
communications with pharmacies over prescription questions. -- More
than half strongly agree that ePrescribing saves clinicians time and
increases productivity.
The study also found that nearly 65 percent of physicians changed at
least one prescription in response to a safety alert that warned of
potentially harmful drug-drug interactions and drug-allergy risks at
the time of prescribing. According to a 2006 report from the Institute
of Medicine (IOM), at least 1.5 million preventable adverse drug
events occur each year in the United States. The IOM recommends that
all doctors adopt ePrescribing by 2010 to help alleviate this number
and avoid the many mistakes that accompany handwritten prescriptions,
including illegible handwriting, abbreviations and sound-alike
pharmaceutical names.
Based on the survey findings, the SEMI partners will extend the
initiative and continue to enroll physicians through June 30, 2008.
About SEMI
Launched in February 2005, The Southeast Michigan ePrescribing
Initiative is one of the largest, employer-driven ePrescribing
initiatives to encourage the adoption and use of ePrescribing, and
validate the impact of ePrescribing technology on improving patient
safety and reducing prescription drug costs. SEMI is a joint
collaboration between General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler
LLC, the United Auto Workers (UAW), Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Michigan, Health Alliance Plan, Henry Ford Medical Group, Medco Health
Solutions, Inc., CVS Caremark Corporation, RxHub, LLC and
SureScripts(R).
Physicians interested in joining SEMI may call 1-800-722-8979 for more
information.
About GM
General Motors Corp. , the world's largest automaker, has been the
annual global industry sales leader for 77 years. Founded in 1908, GM
today employs about 266,000 people around the world. With global
headquarters in Detroit, GM manufactures its cars and trucks in 35
countries. In 2007, nearly 9.37 million GM cars and trucks were sold
globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC,
GM Daewoo, Holden, HUMMER, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and
Wuling. GM's OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle
safety, security and information services. More information on GM can
be found at http://www.gm.com/.
About Ford
Ford Motor Company , a global automotive industry leader based in
Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles in 200
markets across six continents. With about 260,000 employees and about
100 plants worldwide, the company's core and affiliated automotive
brands include Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and
Mazda. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor
Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford's products, please
visit http://www.fordvehicles.com/.
About Chrysler
Chrysler LLC, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich., produces Chrysler,
Jeep, Dodge and Mopar(R) brand vehicles and products. Its product
lineup features some of the world's most recognizable vehicles,
including the Chrysler 300, Jeep Wrangler and Dodge Charger. The
Company sells and services vehicles in more than 125 countries around
the world. The operations outside North America have been experiencing
year-over-year sales increases since 2004, with a record number of
vehicles sold in 2007. The Chrysler Foundation - the primary source of
charitable grants made by Chrysler - annually supports hundreds of
charitable organizations with an emphasis on community growth and
enrichment, education, arts and culture, public policy, youth
development and disaster relief programs throughout the United States
and, increasingly, the world. Chrysler is a unit of Cerberus Capital
Management.
About HAP
Headquartered in Detroit, Health Alliance Plan is a nonprofit health
plan serving 545,000 members and 2,000 employer groups. HAP is a
subsidiary of the Henry Ford Health System, one of the nation's
leading regional health care systems. The health plan serves companies
of all sizes through the flagship HMO, PPOs, Medicare Advantage plans,
experience-rated, fully insured and self- funded products, SOLO
individual plans and high-deductible health plans with compatible
health savings accounts. The National Committee for Quality Assurance
awarded HAP's commercial HMO and HAP Senior Plus, its Medicare
Advantage HMO, Excellent Accreditation.
About Henry Ford Medical Group
The Henry Ford Medical Group is one of the nation's largest group
practices, with 1,000 physicians and researchers in more than 40
specialties who staff Henry Ford Hospital and 25 Henry Ford medical
centers in Southeast Michigan. It is part of Henry Ford Health System
(http://www.henryford.com/), one of the country's leading health care
systems, that integrates primary and specialty care with research and
education.
About Blue Cross Blue Shield
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (http://www.bcbsm.com/), a
nonprofit organization, provides and administers health benefits to
more than 4.6 million members residing in Michigan in addition to
members of Michigan- headquartered groups who reside outside the
state. The company offers a broad variety of plans including:
Traditional Blue Cross Blue Shield; Blue Preferred, Community Blue and
Healthy Blue Incentives PPOs; Blue Care Network HMO; BCN Healthy Blue
Living; Flexible Blue plans compatible with health savings accounts;
Medicare Advantage; Part D Prescription Drug plans, and MyBlue
products in the under-age-65 individual market. Blue Cross Blue Shield
of Michigan and Blue Care Network are nonprofit corporations and
independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
About Medco
Medco Health Solutions, Inc., is the nation's leading pharmacy benefit
manager based on its 2007 total net revenues of more than $44 billion.
Medco's prescription drug benefit programs, covering one in five
Americans, are designed to drive down the cost of pharmacy health care
for private and public employers, health plans, labor unions and
government agencies of all sizes, and for individuals served by the
Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Program. Medco, the world's most
advanced pharmacy(TM), is positioned to serve the unique needs of
patients with chronic and complex conditions through its Medco
Therapeutic Resource Centers(R); its diabetes pharmacy care practice,
Liberty Medical; and its specialty pharmacy operation, Accredo Health
Group, Inc. Medco is the highest-ranked independent pharmacy benefit
manager on the 2007 Fortune 500 list. On the Net:
http://www.medco.com/.
About CVS Caremark
CVS Caremark is the largest provider of prescriptions and related
healthcare services in the nation. The Company fills or manages more
than 1 billion prescriptions annually. Through its unmatched breadth
of service offerings, CVS Caremark is transforming the delivery of
healthcare services in the U.S. The Company is uniquely positioned to
effectively manage costs and improve healthcare outcomes through its
6,200 CVS/pharmacy stores; its pharmacy benefit management, mail order
and specialty pharmacy division, Caremark Pharmacy Services; its
retail-based health clinic subsidiary, MinuteClinic; and its online
pharmacy, CVS.com. General information about CVS Caremark is available
through the Investor Relations portion of the Company's website, at
http://investor.cvs.com/, as well as through the pressroom portion of
the Company's website, at http://www.cvs.com/pressroom.
Southeast Michigan ePrescribing Initiative
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