2008
Electronic-Prescription Plan Is Set
The country’s two largest electronic-prescription networks Tuesday announced a merger, creating a single, secure network for the exchange of digital health information.
In a cashless transaction, which closed late Monday, RxHub LLC, a joint-venture of pharmacy-benefit managers, CVS Caremark Corp., Express Scripts, Inc. and Medco Health Solutions, Inc., will combine its operations with SureScripts, a private company founded by the National Community Pharmacists Association and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores. The merger isn’t subject to antitrust review because the fair market value of the combined entity isn’t high enough, according to the companies.
The owners of RxHub and SureScripts will each retain a 50% stake in the new venture, which will initially go by the name SureScripts-RxHub, LLC, according to executives from the two companies.
The initiative is the latest in a flurry of recent moves that are likely to speed the adoption of paperless prescriptions, seen as a useful but little-used tool. The health care industry aims to shift from costly, error-prone paper prescriptions to more streamlined electronic methods that have the potential to improve patient safety and reduce the cost of care, but which also raise questions about the security and privacy of patient data.