NCJ Number
248834
Date Published
April 2015
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This report summarizes performance data provided by the grantees under the Federal Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), which was authorized by Congress in FY 2002 for the purpose of improving the capacity of State officials (i.e., law enforcement, public health, and regulatory boards) in collecting and analyzing controlled substance prescription data through a centralized State administered database.
Abstract
As of December 2013, 48 States and one U.S. Territory (Guam) had operational PDMP systems. The grantee self-reported data cover the period from January-December 2013. Grantee performance reports indicate that by the end of 2013, 36 percent of licensed pharmacists and 22 percent of licensed prescribers registered to use PDMP systems. There was a steady increase in the number of patients filling prescriptions within a 3-month period for all reported drug schedules, until the last quarter of 2013, when these prescriptions declined. The number of both adults and youth receiving painkiller prescriptions (morphine equivalent of 100 mg or greater per day) varied in 2013. The number of adults receiving these prescriptions increased overall in 2013. For Schedule II drugs, there was an overall increase in the number of patients exceeding Thresholds A and B for the year; however, the year ended with a 13-percent decrease in the number of patients exceeding Threshold A for Schedule II drugs. Dosages of Schedule II, III, and/or IV drugs dispensed for both patients exceeding Threshold A and B decreased from the beginning of the year. An average of 91 percent of required pharmacies reported at least once every 3 months in the PDMP. The majority of all PDMP reports were produced for prescribers (68 percent), followed by pharmacists (31 percent). 3 tables and appended key performance measure data for October-December 2013, along with key performance measure definitions