Michigan’s looming electronic prescribing date moved to January 1

By

Patrick Jones

|

The Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS) received confirmation from staff at the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) that the date by which Michigan prescribers will be required to electronically transmit all prescriptions for controlled and non-controlled substances will be delayed.  The new date is January 1, 2022.  LARA sent a formal statement to prescribers and stakeholders on Wednesday concerning implementation of Michigan’s e-prescribing law.

Several factors have contributed to the uncertainty surrounding the actual effective date:

  1. Public Act 134 of 2020 requires prescribers to electronically transmit prescriptions beginning on October 1, 2021.  However, it also includes language that allows the date to be delayed if the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) delays the federal electronic prescribing (e-prescribing) mandate for all controlled substances under Medicaid Part D [MCL 333.17754a(10)].
  2. The federal e-prescribing mandate took effect on January 1, 2021, but CMS determined it will not enforce it at this time.  Instead, they finalized an effective date of January 1, 2021, and a compliance date of January 1, 2022.
  3. Federal and state statutes allow for a waiver to be issued if a prescriber cannot meet the electronic prescribing requirements under the respective governing laws.  However, there is currently no ability to obtain a waiver from either the federal or state laws.  Rules are being promulgated by CMS and LARA, respectively, that will address the process for obtaining a waiver and related eligibility criteria.  Public hearings were recently held to take comments on LARA’s proposed rules and MSMS did submitted a letter.
  4. The proposed 2022 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Rules recommend to further delay the federal e-prescribing date to January 1, 2023.  It remains to be seen if this provision will be approved and, if so, whether LARA will continue to align Michigan’s deadline with a delayed CMS enforcement date. The final 2022 Medicare PFS Rules are anticipated to be released in November.

If you would like additional background including the list of statutory exceptions in Michigan’s law, please read this Medigram article published in January 2021.

This press release was provided by Michigan State Medical Society.