CVS Caremark Announces e-Prescribing Agreement with Allscripts
08 January 2010 - 5:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
WOONSOCKET, R.I. and CHICAGO, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS Caremark
(NYSE: CVS) today announced an agreement with Allscripts
(NASDAQ:MDRX) that will position both companies to help accelerate
adoption of e-prescribing technology. This agreement between the
nation's largest pharmacy health care provider and the largest
provider of e-prescribing and Electronic Health Record (EHR)
solutions will enhance the ability of CVS Caremark to support its
payer and employer clients in driving e-prescribing adoption
throughout their networks. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100107/NE33931LOGO ) (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/NE75914LOGO ) As part
of this agreement, CVS Caremark will transition the thousands of
providers now using the company's proprietary iScribe e-prescribing
tool to Allscripts e-prescribing and retire iScribe. Considered the
"on-ramp to the electronic healthcare highway," e-prescribing often
serves as a first step toward adoption of a full EHR, which
provides e-prescribing capabilities while also automating the
everyday clinical tasks of caregivers and connecting them to key
healthcare stakeholders. Under the agreement, iScribe users will
also have the opportunity to transition to a full Allscripts EHR,
enabling them to qualify under the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for between $44,000 and $64,000 in federal
incentive payments beginning in 2011. The Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services already provides financial incentives for
e-prescribing under the Medicare Improvements for Patients and
Providers Act (MIPPA). As adoption of e-prescribing technology and
EHRs increases in response to these significant federal incentives,
CVS Caremark will focus its efforts at the point-of-care. That work
will include initiatives with market leaders such as Allscripts to
deliver enhanced information about plan design, drug formulary,
generic options, potential drug interactions, and eventually care
plans to providers at the point-of-care to help improve quality,
ensure safety and provide the most cost-effective treatment
protocols. CVS Caremark's goals are to promote savings for the
patient, payers and employers; enhance the customer experience at
the pharmacy; and improve patient medication compliance which can
help improve health outcomes. Given CVS Caremark's ability to
enhance pharmacy health care at multiple touch-points, the company
is well-positioned to take the lead at developing and implementing
new programs and initiatives that help deliver the right
information to guide physician and caregiver medication decision
making at the point-of-care. "This represents a natural progression
of our work in the expanding e-prescribing industry," said Troyen
Brennan, M.D., M.P.H., Executive Vice President and Chief Medical
Officer of CVS Caremark. "We helped define this market through our
participation as one of the founders of the Surescripts network
which connects prescribers to critical prescribing information and
the pharmacy, and as an early provider of e-prescribing tools.
Working directly with Allscripts in this next phase will strengthen
our ability to deliver scalable e-prescribing solutions, which
include valuable information, to meet our clients' business and
clinical goals." The agreement with Allscripts, along with a
broader ePrescribing and eHealth strategy involving the two
companies, increases the ability of CVS Caremark to reach
prescribers beyond that provided by investment in a single clinical
tool. Allscripts offers physicians in independent practice and in
larger groups or institutions a wide variety of solutions to meet
their needs, ranging from a standalone mobile smartphone
e-prescribing solution to robust EHR with embedded e-prescribing
technology. "Electronic prescribing is a proven technology that can
improve health outcomes by reducing medication errors, leading to
lower health care costs," said Glen Tullman, Chief Executive
Officer of Allscripts. "With this partnership, CVS Caremark has
demonstrated its continuing leadership in the promotion of patient
safety by preparing former iScribe physicians to take advantage of
the new federal incentives for adoption of electronic health
records, which let them not only e-prescribe but automate and
connect their clinical operations for higher quality and greater
efficiency. We also look forward to working with CVS Caremark to
provide valuable new information that will help physicians and
caregivers better manage patient care." About CVS Caremark CVS
Caremark is the largest provider of prescriptions in the nation.
The Company fills or manages more than 1 billion prescriptions
annually. Through its unmatched breadth of service offerings, CVS
Caremark is transforming the delivery of health care services in
the U.S. The Company is uniquely positioned to effectively manage
costs and improve health care outcomes through its more than 7,000
CVS/pharmacy and Longs Drugs stores; its Caremark Pharmacy Services
division (pharmacy benefit management, mail order and specialty
pharmacy); its retail-based health clinic subsidiary, MinuteClinic;
and its online pharmacy, CVS.com. General information about CVS
Caremark is available through the Investor Relations section of the
Company's Web site, at http://www.cvscaremark.com/investors, as
well as through the press room section of the Company's Web site,
at http://www.cvscaremark.com/newsroom. About Allscripts Allscripts
uses innovation technology to bring health to healthcare. More than
160,000 physicians, 800 hospitals and nearly 8,000 post-acute and
homecare organizations utilize Allscripts to improve the health of
their patients and their bottom line. The company's award-winning
solutions include electronic health records, electronic
prescribing, revenue cycle management, practice management,
document management, care management, emergency department
information systems and homecare automation. Allscripts is the
trade name of Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions, Inc. To learn
more, visit http://www.allscripts.com/. This news release may
contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
federal securities laws. Statements regarding future events,
developments, Allscripts' [the Company] future performance, as well
as management's expectations, beliefs, intentions, plans, estimates
or projections relating to the future are forward-looking
statements within the meaning of these laws. These forward-looking
statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, some
of which are outlined below. As a result, actual results may vary
materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking
statements. Among the important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those indicated by such
forward-looking statements are: the volume and timing of systems
sales and installations; length of sales cycles and the
installation process; the possibility that products will not
achieve or sustain market acceptance; the timing, cost and success
or failure of new product and service introductions, development
and product upgrade releases; competitive pressures including
product offerings, pricing and promotional activities; our ability
to establish and maintain strategic relationships; undetected
errors or similar problems in our software products; compliance
with existing laws, regulations and industry initiatives and future
changes in laws or regulations in the healthcare industry; possible
regulation of the Company's software by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration; the possibility of product-related liabilities; our
ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; our ability to
identify and complete acquisitions, manage our growth and integrate
acquisitions; the ability to recognize the benefits of the merger
with Misys Healthcare Systems, LLC ("MHS"); the integration of MHS
with the Company and the possible disruption of current plans and
operations as a result thereof; maintaining our intellectual
property rights and litigation involving intellectual property
rights; risks related to third-party suppliers; our ability to
obtain, use or successfully integrate third-party licensed
technology; breach of our security by third parties; and the risk
factors detailed from time to time in our reports filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including our 2009 Annual
Report on Form 10-K available through the Web site maintained by
the Securities and Exchange Commission at http://www.sec.gov/. The
Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. For more Allscripts news, follow us on
Twitter at: http://twitter.com/AllscriptsMisys CVS Caremark
Contacts: Nancy Christal Christine Cramer Senior Vice President
Director Investor Relations Corporate Communications CVS Caremark
CVS Caremark (914) 722-4704 (401) 770-3317 Allscripts Contacts:
Seth Frank Todd Stein Vice President Senior Manager Investor
Relations Public Relations (312) 506-1213 (312) 506-1216
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/NE75914LOGO
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100107/NE33931LOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: CVS Caremark CONTACT: Nancy
Christal, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations,
+1-914-722-4704, or Christine Cramer, Director, Corporate
Communications, +1-401-770-3317, both of CVS Caremark; or Seth
Frank, Vice President, Investor Relations, +1-312-506-1213, or Todd
Stein, Senior Manager, Public Relations, +1-312-506-1216, Web Site:
http://www.cvscaremark.com/newsroom
Copyright