P4HA in AL: Alabama officials look at ways to get medication taken properly by patients

With many people not taking medications as prescribed, health care experts are turning to everything from financial incentives to text messages to get patients to follow their doctors’ orders.

National health care organizations, state officials and others gathered at the Legislature on Tuesday to share ideas about improving medication adherence and controlling health care costs.

Joel White, executive director of the Council for Affordable Health Coverage, said national surveys have shown that two-thirds of patients don’t take their medications as prescribed, and more than one-fifth of new prescriptions are never filled.

“Pills don’t work unless you take them,” he said.

Source: The Republic

Patient portals boost diabetic medication adherence by 6%

New research from Kaiser Permanente and the National Institutes of Health shows that online patient portal access that includes the ability to refill prescriptions can raise the level of medication adherence for diabetic patients by at least six percent. A key feature of Stage 2 Meaningful Use, well-designed patient portals can help encourage engagement and aid patients in understanding their own health by providing personal health information and the ability to communicate with providers in a convenient and efficient way.

Source: EHR Intelligence