State Rolls Out Electronic Prescription Mandate

New York has become the first state in the U.S. to require doctors to electronically prescribe all medications and threaten prescribers with a penalty if they fail to comply. Electronic prescribing is seen as a way to reduce the risk of forged or altered paper prescriptions and help combat opioid abuse. The electronic prescribing requirement, which took effect on March 27, is contained in the same legislation that created the state’s prescription-drug monitoring program, which doctors can check before prescribing a narcotic to see if the patient is showing a pattern of possible drug abu...