We like to think that when we write a prescription, the patient might actually be filling it and taking the medication. In fact, they often do not. Some interesting data published by Surescripts suggests that significantly more prescriptions are actually filled when they are sent electronically. To briefly summarize the data:
Out of 100 prescriptions written:
Before eRx, 73.2% made it to the pharmacy and 69.5% were picked up.
After eRx, 81.8% got to the pharmacy and 76.5% were picked up, representing a 10% increase.
Note that in this study, even after adoption of eRx only 81.8% of the prescriptions made it to the pharmacy because in the early stages of use, the physicians didn't always use that modality. Presumably as the number actually e-prescribed rises, the improvement in "pick-up" will increase.
A 10% increase in the number of prescriptions picked-up could have a significant impact on patient health. Other interesting data is
in the press release. 
