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February 27, 2008

HFS Notice re: Tamper-Resistant Prescription Pads

The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services has issued the following reminder about a new requirement for non-electronic Medicaid prescriptions:

The Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) is making changes in order to be compliant with a new federal law regarding Medicaid prescriptions. This recent change in federal law, included in section 7002(b) of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 2007, requires that effective April 1, 2008, all non-electronic Medicaid prescriptions must be written on tamper-resistant prescription pads.

It is important that hospitals are aware of these changes, because hospitals may provide prescription pads to prescribers in their facilities. Pharmacies will not be able to fill prescriptions written on prescription pads that do not comply with these new requirements.

The requirement does not apply to electronic prescriptions. An electronic prescription is one that is transmitted from the prescriber to the pharmacy via telephone, telefacsimile, electronic prescribing (e-prescribing) mechanism, or other means of electronic transmission. The Department strongly encourages providers to use an electronic method to transmit prescriptions to pharmacies.

Please ensure that any prescription pads obtained by the hospital for hospital-based prescribers, either in the emergency room, hospital-based practice, or other hospital-based setting, for use in writing prescriptions for Medicaid patients, are compliant with the new tamper-resistant prescription pad requirements.

Information on this requirement can be found by clicking here.