Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2009, $50,000)
Since the beginning of FY 2002, Congress has appropriated funding to the U.S. Department of Justice to support the Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). Prescription drug monitoring programs enhance the capacity of regulatory and law enforcement agencies and public health officials to collect and analyze controlled substance prescription data through a centralized database administered by an authorized state agency. These programs are designed to help prevent and detect the diversion and abuse of pharmaceutical controlled substances, particularly at the retail level where no other automated information collection system exists.
The Prescription Drug Monitoring Program assists states as they plan, implement, or enhance a PDMP. PDMPs: build a state-level data collection and analysis system to enhance the capacity of regulatory and law enforcement agencies and public health officials for future prevention efforts; enhance existing programs' abilities to analyze and use collected data to identify drug abuse trends and increase the number of users of the PDMP; facilitate national evaluation efforts to ensure continued support; encourage the exchange of information among states to prevent cross-border diversion; assess the efficiency and effectiveness of programs to ensure continued state-level support; and, enhance collaborations with law enforcement, prosecutors, treatment professionals, the medical community, and pharmacies to establish a comprehensive PDMP strategy.
The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (MDHMH) will use the 2009 Harold Rogers Prescription Drug Monitoring Program funds to plan the establishment of the Maryland PDMP. The program will significantly reduce prescription drug abuse and contribute to the improvement of the health of Maryland citizens. Once the funds are received, Maryland plans to implement strategic planning meetings with partners and other interested stakeholders to begin discussions concerning the development of Maryland's PDMP, as well as to allow stakeholders to have an opportunity to provide input into how they will interact with each other and the program. As these meetings progress, a facilitator may be sought to lead meetings and to assist with the discussions and development of recommendations to MDHMH on policy and programmatic matters. To measure the effectiveness of the Maryland PDMP, the program will identify the number of prescribers who modify prescribing practices as a result of program educational efforts. The program will also identify the number of proactive reports to prescribers regarding individuals whose prescription usage may be an indicator of abuse or a need for more effective plan management efforts. The number and types of requests for reports of database information, including the source of those requests (i.e. prescriber, pharmacist, law enforcement, statistics, etc.), will be identified. The Maryland PDMP will track the number of investigations initiated due to information derived from program data including identification of the agency receiving the information (i.e. law enforcement, state regulatory agency, Medicaid, etc.) and the results of the investigations.
The grant funds will be used to implement and continue the initial and ongoing stakeholder meetings, including speaker costs, meeting costs, travel reimbursement, material replication, computer purchases, office supplies, printing and copying fees, postage fees, and other delivery costs.
CA/NCF