David:
We can't do pure electronic prescribing in my part of Arkansas, either. Too few places have that capability, in my neck of the woods.
I had considered faxing my prescriptions to the pharmacy, as some have suggested, but I think of the times (all too often) when I hand people their prescription, and there is something wrong with it (my fault or their fault). If I faxed the prescription, the error would not be discovered until it was too late.
I like printing off a nice legible prescription from Amazing Charts, handing it to people and allowing them to review the prescription before they leave. This gives them plenty of time to remember an allergy that they forgot about, or some nuance of their prescription plan.
Also, people often tell me they want their prescription sent to one pharmacy, and then go to another. I then get an angry phone call from the patient, wondering where their prescription is! I tell them I faxed it to ABC pharmacy, and they tell me they want it sent to XYZ pharmacy.
I would rather just hand them the prescription, and let them carry it where ever they want.
In summation, I feel like sending people out the door with a printed prescription is actually safer in many ways, and it saves me calls from the pharmacy.
