Congress Postpones Tamper-Resistant Prescription Pad Law

Congress has moved quickly to delay implementation of a recently passed law requiring physicians and pharmacists to start using either electronic prescriptions or tamper-resistant prescription pads for their Medicaid patients.

Congressional members approved a measure on Sept. 27 that delays implementation of the tamper-resistant prescription pad law by six months, which means physicians and pharmacists have until April 1 to comply with the law passed in late July as part of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 2007.

The law was scheduled to take effect today, prompting vocal protests from physicians and pharmacists who said the Oct. 1 implementation date did not give them enough time to comply with the measure. CMS tried to address those concerns by issuing a guidance document (3-page PDF; About PDFs) on Aug. 12 that said, among other things, that the tamper-resistant statute does not affect faxed, phoned-in or e-mailed prescriptions and that prescriptions filled on an emergency basis are allowed on noncompliant prescription pads. Physicians, pharmacists and other stakeholders still maintained that the Oct 1. deadline was too soon, however.

Tom Banning, director of government relations at the Texas AFP, said the law's deadline date of Oct. 1 would have "driven physicians out of the Medicaid program."

"I think the intent of the legislation is a good one," said Banning. "No one wants fraud or misrepresentation in the Medicaid program," but, he added, the Oct. 1 deadline was more of a "stick" that would have "hurt patient care" than an incentive to join the program.

"We are thankful and excited that we are going to have a little bit more time to begin to educate doctors about the potential change and work out some technical issues to make sure there are no unintended consequences of the legislation," Banning said.

Congress approved the provision delaying the Oct. 1 deadline as part of a broader relief bill, S.B. 1701, (at the THOMAS Web site, type "S 1701" in the search box after selecting "Bill Number") that extends Medicaid's transitional medical assistance and abstinence education programs through the end of the year. Congress endorsed the measure to delay the Oct. 1 start date within a few days of its introduction in the House and Senate.

"I think one of the things this shows is that when physicians engage in the political process, Congress listens," said Banning.