Tennessee Ranks 2nd Most Improved in E-Prescriptions

Tennessee has been recognized as the 2nd “Most Improved” state in regards to electronic prescriptions. Tennessee came in just behind Vermont. E-prescriptions in the state rose from 1% of all prescriptions written to 4%.

Tennessee had been giving incentives to gear up for e-prescribing. The state government had been offering doctors $3500 for start up expenses for the e-prescribing software. These funds ran out in March. State officials hope that more money may be available through the federal stimulus bill, and there is already a waiting list of doctors for it.

Governor Bredesen is co-chair of the State Alliance for e-Health. He spoke at the Safe-Rx Awards ceremony yesterday, where he accepted Tennessee’s honor.

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The Safe-Rx Awards are sponsored by Surescripts, the nation’s largest network for electronic prescriptions. Awards are given out to the ten states with the highest percentage of e-prescriptions, as well as the five “most improved” states.

Massachusetts leads the nation in e-prescriptions, with 20% of all prescriptions being electronic.

Tennessee jumped eleven spots from its ranking last year – from 29th in the nation to 18th. Click here for a complete list of Tennessee’s e-prescription stats.

More information on e-prescribing is available at Surescripts’ website.