Item request has been placed! ×
Item request cannot be made. ×
loading  Processing Request

Effects of evidence-based formulary restrictions at a Veterans Affairs medical center.

Item request has been placed! ×
Item request cannot be made. ×
loading   Processing Request
Read Online Read More Add to Saved list
  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      DRUG prescribing; MEDICAL prescriptions; MEDICAL care costs; COST effectiveness; PRESCRIPTION pricing; MEDICAL research
    • Subject Terms:
      OKLAHOMA City (Okla.); OKLAHOMA
    • Abstract:
      The Oklahoma City Veterans Affairs Medical Center restructured its formulary system in 2003, creating a system of restrictive criteria for certain drugs to improve pharmaceutical cost effectiveness by enforcing evidence-based indications in the prescription system. The new criteria-restriction system required the use of formulary drugs as first-line therapy; prescriptions for nonpreferred, criteria-restricted drugs had to be justified by the prescriber at the time of prescription in accordance with the criteria established by the pharmacy and therapeutics (P&T) committee. To determine the effects of the system on cost avoidance and prescriber opinion, we analyzed drug utilization statistics and surveyed prescribers. Analysis demonstrated that the criteria-restriction system was an effective cost-avoidance tool because inappropriate prescriptions for restricted, high-cost drugs were curtailed in favor of lower-cost formulary alternatives. The total cost avoidance observed after placing 15 outpatient drugs in the criteria-restriction system at the Oklahoma City Veterans Affairs Medical Center pharmacy was $1.23 million to $1.54 million yearly, equaling 4% to 5% of the total outpatient pharmacy budget. Prescribers generally felt that the system was a ‘necessary nuisance,’ but many expressed frustration concerning the unwieldy interface of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
    • Abstract:
      Copyright of Formulary is the property of MJH Life Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)