Dear Editor:
In the article “Report on Medicare Cites Prescription Drug Abuse,” you reported that Medicare beneficiaries have been abusing their access to medications. Patients have received prescriptions from multiple prescribers and filled them up at various pharmacies. This is significant as federal funds intended to aid the sick and elderly are instead used for monetary or addictive reasons by patients. Furthermore, this drug abuse could lead to increased costs to taxpayers. Medicare officials have been slow to recognize the evidence of such abuse.
One thing that could make a difference is to implement a health policy in which pharmacies, physicians, and prescription drug plans better streamline information on medical history, in order to find warning signs of abuse. In addition, both patients and providers could try to better coordinate in the treatment of pain symptoms to remove the need to visit another physician for extra medication. However, through such policy, we must remember that our focus is maintaining patients’ access to care.
Sincerely,
Sarah Youn
Berkeley, CA
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading what you had to say about the issue of medicare beneficiaries overusing their access to medication. I share many of the same concerns and perspectives as you do regarding this case. I think that perhaps if pharmaceutical companies used better communication systems with one another this would help us streamline information on who is abusing the system.
Thanks for you post,
Partow
Sarah -
ReplyDeleteI agree with your opinion that medical records need to be improved in order to track patients' use of prescription drugs and potentially narrow in on beneficiaries who may be abusing their benefits. A lack of coordinated care in the Medicaid system is definitely at the root of this problem. While I think that an electronic record system that functions with the use of card chips that store a patient's full medical history (as are used in Taiwan) would be a very useful strategy to improve coordinated care, I am also aware that many Americans would feel this to be an invasion of privacy and basic rights; they would also most likely feel that it gave the government too much control and access to citizens' information. I think that it would be very interesting to hear some other ideas about how medical records and coordinated care could best be promoted in our society.
Best,
Lacie Wilson