Doctor shopping occurs when a patient seeks duplicative prescriptions from multiple physicians. In 2000, Illinois implemented a Prescription Monitoring Program, which has led to a 66 percent decrease in doctor shopping in the state since 2008, according to the ISMS report. The Prescription Monitoring Program is a database for prescribers and dispensers to see patients’ prescription history.
Despite this, Illinois has seen increasing heroin-related deaths, according to the report. To help combat this ISMS issued recommendations to the task force, which include increasing education for providers and patients, encouraging Missouri to create a prescription monitoring program, improving the disposal of medications, increasing access to Naloxone, which reverses opioid overdoses, improving insurance coverage for substance abuse treatment and improving the Prescription Monitoring Program itself, according to the report.
Specifically, ISMS called for a reduction in the number of prescribers a patient must see within 30 days to be flagged: It is currently six or more, but ISMS recommends flagging patients who see three or more prescribers or four or more pharmacies in 30 days.
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