Part B Insider (Multispecialty) Coding Alert

Published on Thu Sep 08, 2005 PDF

If your practice wants to prescribe drugs electronically, it may soon become a lot easier. A proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services would allow a hospital or other facility to give your office hardware, software and training services for electronic prescriptions.

Good news: The hospital could provide this help without falling afoul of anti-fraud and anti-kickback laws. Your doctor could still refer patients to the hospital, even though the computer equipment and assistance may count as a financial relationship.

Meanwhile, the HHS Office of Inspector General announced it was proposing "safe harbors" for electronic prescriptions. One proposal would set out the rules under which a hospital can give your office hardware, software and help with e-prescriptions. A second proposal would cover donations of electronic health records. And eventually, hospitals may be able to donate other kinds of technology, once HHS establishes a list of products.

In the future, there may be a limit on the total cash value of the technology one hospital can donate to you.

Also, CMS will soon issue a final rule with standards for electronic prescriptions.