The WVSMA has been working pro-actively to keep physicians up to date and compliant with the new federal tamper resistant prescription pad mandate. We have applied for a grant to financially assist West Virginia physicians to meet the federally mandated tamper resistant prescription requirement. This grant will give physicians a "jump-start" on the new tamper resistant pads by providing approximately 500 physicians with a 6-month supply of tamper resistant pads or paper. These funds, which first must be appropriated by the WV Legislature, came from the settlement money awarded to the State Police through the Perdue Pharma OxyContin lawsuit. 

All written prescriptions for Medicaid recipients will soon be required to be written on mandated tamper resistant prescription pads in order to be eligible for reimbursement. This action is required by section 7002(b) of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 2007, which was signed into law on May 25, 2007.

As of April 1, 2008, all prescription pads or printer paper for prescriptions written for Medicaid members are required to have at least one of the features listed below.  By October 1, 2008, prescription pads and paper will be required to have all three of the following recognized characteristics: 

1.  Industry-recognized features designed to prevent unauthorized copying
2.  Industry-recognized feature(s) designed to prevent erasure or modification of information written by the prescriber, or
3.  Industry-recognized feature(s) designed to prevent use of counterfeit prescription forms

According to this mandate, physicians who use computer generated prescriptions for Medicaid patients will also need to ensure that the paper being used in their printers is compliant and tamper resistant.

The WVMSA has worked diligently with the WV Bureau for Medical Services in order to assist physicians with the federal mandate. We have met to determine the security features that are economical and reasonable to implement. Physicians will soon be receiving correspondence from the Bureau describing the required features.

Over the past few months, the WVSMA has also been actively involved with obtaining price quotes from print vendors for tamper resistant prescription pads. These vendors include both instate and national firms. We have found a company who can supply quantity pricing for both the tamper resistant prescription pads and the tamper resistant printer paper for computer generated prescriptions. The company has also pledged to meet and exceed the requirements set by the WV Bureau for Medical Services for the tamper resistant prescription pads. In addition to providing the tamper resistant paper/pads, all West Virginia pharmacies will be contacted and advised that any prescription written on this vendor's prescription pads or paper will be compliant with state requirements, thereby reducing the number of phone calls and questions from pharmacists who are filling prescriptions for Medicaid patients. 

The WVSMA has plans in place to move quickly once the WV State Legislature approves appropriation. As soon as the grant money is available, we will communicate to physicians the process for applying for a complimentary supply of tamper resistant prescription pads or paper.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you need more information or have additional questions, please contact Barbara Good, WVSMA Physician Practice Advocate, at (304) 925-0342, ext. 11 or via email (Barbara@wvsma.com).