Patient ID verification offers untapped potential in the battle against addiction

I recently read an interesting Washington Post article about efforts to prevent people from abusing pain-killers prescribed for their pets. In response to this disturbing trend, states like Colorado and Maine have passed laws allowing or requiring veterinarians to check the prescription histories of pet owners.

This exemplifies how information can be an effective weapon in the ongoing battle against opioid addiction. Understandably, in seeking solutions, there’s an emphasis on the “what,” but we also need to look to the “who,” and this is where data and technology can have a meaningful impact.

At the pharmacist level, there’s a lot of effort dedicated to provider verification, as there should be. But it’s a different story at the patient level. And while millions of people truly need opioids to function, we must strike a balance between preventing addiction and fraud while allowing access and maintaining the integrity of the prescription process.

One area worth examining in this complex issue is how to determine if patients are who they say they are. Patient identification regulations and requirements vary by state. For example, Massachusetts requires a “valid government-issued identification” to pick up a prescription, but Illinois, while mandating a “valid photographic identification,” has no requirement that it be government-issued.

Technology provides the ability to verify a patient’s identity and, if needed, provide insight into their prescription history. However, retailers, know that adding another step means adding more time to each customer transaction, which can impact margins and interrupt workflow. Additionally, community pharmacists have grown their patient base through relationship-building and feel they know their patients.

Clearly, there’s a role and need for identity management platforms such as surveys that can be employed only when needed to minimize risk without disrupting workflow or the patient-pharmacist relationship.

Some identity verification solutions rely only on a patient’s financial information to pose a series of questions, but a deeper dive into an individual’s identity enhances security and helps prevent fraud. Tools like LexisNexis InstantID revolve around comprehensive profiles for more than 270 million Americans, including those who do not have a well-documented financial history. Employing such tools, when needed, provides a deeper, wider and broader perspective, relying on information that would be difficult for anyone but the patient/customer to know.

An identity management platform also can identify the scope and nature of activities related to the abuse and distribution of opioids. It can help spot patterns or connections, such as whom the patient knows, with whom he works or does business. Moreover, employing such a platform helps identify patients throughout the continuum of care, and, it helps to better ensure that the correct patient is receiving the correction medication he/she truly needs, prescribed by a properly licensed physician.

Bobbie Riley, RPh, is the vertical market lead, pharmacy, at LexisNexis Risk Solutions - Health Care