Home Forums EPCS with newcrop

Has anybody completed this process yet? Glad that I double clicked on the message today because now it advises that we register even if we are not upgraded to version 8 yet. The recommendation is that the registration with new crop be completed by Feb 27, 2015 in order to allow enough time to complete the entire set up by the March 27th deadline. There is a $120 fee to new crop. It is a laborious process with several log ins and log outs and emails and codes sent to phone. I've been waiting for the full release of version 8 but there is a lot to do with new crop and AC prior to worrying about the upgrade. And then there will be Ropes. Has anybody completed the process yet? I guess I'll try to work it in between patients tomorrow. This all is just getting older and older. I wonder if I'm the only one feeling the burden of this. This is like a half days work just to set up. Oh well....I'd appreciate the thoughts of others. There is this new Friday deadline a month sooner than the old deadline.
Nancy

I'm not sure what you are referring. What is EPCS?

I'm guessing it is eRx for controlled substance. I do know that will be mandatory in NY.

We did not get such message.

never received request to register with NEWCROP either. There is legislation pending, in NY, that is likely to be implemented, which will postpone controlled substance e-prescriptions till 3/27/2016

Well, I jumped through all the hoops yesterday. It was not easy. It is best to print the 29 page instructions and very carefully complete one task at a time. A state picture driver's license is not considered adequate identification. I'm glad I had my passport with me. I then had to go to a notary and fax authentication to Verizon. Once certified multiple additional steps inside new crop. Then registering with ROPES and now awaiting contact with AC support to finalize the process. Many sources reporting that legislation will not happen and March 27, 2015 is date written in stone without delays. I hate when everything turns into self inflicted crisis. Taking all this time and effort and I wonder if it will even work.
Nancy

I saved the message from AC about the mandate and just happened to double click it on Tuesday. The information was updated and had the February 27 date for registration with New Crop and Ropes. It says that it is important to complete the registration by that date in order to assure implementation by the March 27 deadline. There are two links to instructions to do both registrations. AC says please try to do this yourself but call them if you can't. It is just many steps and potentially a need for notary. I was surprised how labor intensive the process is.

Nancy, stop grousing! Be happy that they are giving us the ROPES to hang ourselves.

Nancy
Thanks for your post. Can you share with us where to find the applications and instructions for newcrop.

If you still have the red email they sent us from AC into our inbox a few week ago, then double click on that and it takes you to the AC support page with links to the instructions. I tried to find the instructions just going to the AC website Tuesday evening. It is somewhere in the support section. I couldn't find it that way despite knowing it was there. Using those links make it easier. You can get to the new crops registration info by going to the "manage new crops " drop down in the medication writing part of any patient record. When you go into manage new crops, you then click on the "admin" tab near the top on the right. Once in there, there is a clickable link for registering for epss on the right side. You can follow those directions but they aren't very clear. You need to assign two people one of which is a prescriber and link phones and authenticate and then pass a secure ID thing that may include going to a notary with some kind of federal ID or multiple picture ID's. They use a Verizon authentication process. It took me pretty much all day yesterday between patients. Once the new crops stuff is done, you can register in ROPES. That pretty easy. You are probably already use the NYS website for istop.

Did I mention new crop charges $120. But as JBS suggests, the ROPES to hang ourselves with is free, free, free!

thanks, Nancy

I guess those of us in states not mandating eRx of controlled subs should be thankful. Looks like printed paper scripts will be easier for the time being.

"It appears that New York?s mandatory e-prescribing scheduled for a March 27 live date will be pushed back a year, or at least that?s the impression from an email sent by Healthcare Association of New York State, which is pushing for the delay. The governor seems inclined to sign S.2486/A.4274 that has already passed both houses, which would reset the date to March 27, 2016."
from http://histalk2.com/2015/02/26/news-22715/

That's not what our medical staff is being told. Great if it's true....just threw away another $ 120 on this crap.

"That's not what our medical staff is being told. Great if it's true....just threw away another $ 120 on this crap."
I had assumed that this fee would be once, just for upgrade. I hope so.

So 28 days before this very complicated mess regarding Epcs is mandated, it is still unknown whether or not it will be delayed? Sitting on the Govenor's desk? Why? Will it be illegal to electronically prescribe in 28 days or is it going to be illegal to write the script? If they delay it and a prescriber is okay to eprescribing, can they?
My read of the instructions led me to believe the fee is annual. Hope I was wrong. Now I'm not sure if I should upgrade to V7 or V8. Any advice out there? We have V7 and could easily upgrade this weekend without the help of AC but it is a lot of time/busy work if V8 is stable and we will need that in a couple of weeks. Any advice out there?
Nancy

Did a web search about the possibility of pushing this mandate back to 2016 but came up empty, any of the NY docs have additional info?

1. it seems that the $120 fee for newcrop per practitioner is annual, not one time.
2. newcrop is currently trying to solve a glitch for epcs for midlevel practioners. The took my money w/o a whimper, but cannot seem to enable the 2 step verification, although AC is working on it.
3. Re the governor's signature on the legislation to postpone epcs, no one seems to know, so, at least my office will assume the worst, and upgrade in preparation for this needless complication.

Annual Fee. Another annuity stream that physicians have to pay into? This is highway robbery!

I have read that today 3/12 is the deadline for Cuomo to sign the bill on his desk delaying EPCS for one year. I cannot find anything in the news about this today. Maybe he will wait to midnight to enhance the drama of it all.

Oh and in speaking with another doc on another emr, his annual fee will be $800. This is highway robbery, supposedly to confirm our identity....like your identity changes annually. Physicians/ medicine are single handedly creating the only activity in our economy or so it seems.

oh, that makes me not so mad anymore.

Quest is charging $23/month for eRx including controlled stuff. That's less than NewCrap. And of course PracticeFusion is free.

Nothing in the news this AM so ? signed or not. For me being in CT on border with NY I'll just tell my patients to fill controlled Rx's in CT.
Whatever the future regulations both statewide and nationally on EPCS and the compliance fees and aggravation it may cause will be entered into the 'do I continue prescribing these meds' decision.

Wayne, I'm confused at how $23/mo is cheaper than $120/year?
Nancy

I suspect he may mean in comparison to $1200/year.

it isnt indy its cheaper than 800. i made a typo there.

Apparently Gov. Cuomo signed the bill extending the deadline for a year to 2016. He signed it on Friday the 13 th. So now that I paid my money, when I upgrade to 8.1.1 will I be able to eprescribe narcotics this year?
Nancy

Nancy
I asked the AC guardian angels this during my upgrade. They, in turn, asked Newcrop. No answer forthcoming as yet.
Will we, if we use EPCS, no longer have use iStop?

EPCS is an additional burden on top of istop. We are mandated to do both according to information I have. EPCS does not negate the istop mandate. I'm happy I can put off upgrading a couple computers for a few weeks. I still wonder if we can do EPCS once we do the upgrade or if we still must do paper scripts until next year?
Nancy

Nancy
A google search yielded the following from

http://drugtopics.modernmedicine.co...tory-epcs-e-prescribing-1-year?page=full

" For the month of January, only slightly more than 21,000 EPCS transactions occurred between providers and pharmacies in the Surescripts network, compared to a total of more than 7.3 million electronic prescription transactions in New York, according to Surescripts.

Pharmacies took the lead with EPCS just as they did with traditional e-prescribing, said David Yakimischak, Surescripts? executive vice president and general manager.

?[Pharmacies] made the investments and got ready...which was attractive for the doctors. If the doctors were to go first and there were no pharmacies to talk to, why would they do it?? he said. ?So now it is a matter of doctors, EMRs, and provider networks getting ready to do the things they need to do [to become EPCS enabled].?

So, it seems that we'll be able to use the system, even if not mandated yet.

So I have a friend who upgraded to 8.1.1 last week and he is having all sorts of problems and cannot even eprescribe regular scripts so I'm going to hold off. He can't even reach anybody at support now. It sounds like the same problem they are discussing on the electronic prescribing thread. This is quite disheartening....like we have nothing better to do than spend every free moment trying to keep things working for office hours. I love AC but this whole government nonsensical interference is out of control.
nancy

We upgraded to 8.1.1 last week, as well. Its sluggish compared to 6.6.4, but so far, we've had no problems with eprescribing.

Wow. I started a thread on EPCS in the main page and just found this thread. I'm not so excited about EPCS anymore... 120 / year for triplicates? I pay only $9/100 rx triplicates in texas... I can do 120 as a one time fee to confirm identity. I guess my patients will have to just deal with paper scripts.

The reason the fee is so high and is annual is because the State legislated it as a mandate and required extra and expensive security measures. So, instead of having a reasonable fee, the companies have decided to bleed the physicians some more. They have to pay it, so charge whatever and grow your bottom line.