Mass. BCBS, Zix use e-prescribing to enroll patients in disease management program

BOSTON Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and Zix have joined together to conduct a program to enroll eligible patients in chronic care through e-prescribing alerts, according to published reports.

Zix’s PocketScript e-prescribing service will be used in the program to alert physicians at the point of care that a patient may be eligible for enrollment in BCBSMA’s disease management program.

Rick Spurr, chief executive officer of Zix, said PocketScript’s new alert application will allow a more timely intervention in chronic care cases. It also allows patients to enroll while they are most likely to be willing and they can discuss the matter on the spot with their physician.

“Together with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, we believe that the country’s largest e-prescribing network can be leveraged to provide additional value to the prescribers, further increase patient safety and reduce overall healthcare costs to payors, physicians and patients,” Spurr said. “The disease management feature is an example of how e-prescribing can be the platform for introducing the benefits of healthcare information technology to physicians, especially those in smaller or rural practices that otherwise don’t have access to such technology.”