A pilot program in Ohio is using fingerprint scans in an effort to fight prescription drug abuse. Patients submit to a scan before seeing doctors in one hospital system, while several pharmacies are using the scans for patients filling prescriptions. Participation in the program is voluntary and if the pilot program is successful, the scans could become more widespread throughout the state. Once the fingerprint is scanned, the data is instantly uploaded to the patient’s electronic medical record. The information will help track how many times the patient has visited the doctor and pharmacy, and how many pills the patient has been prescribed. The instant information provided by the fingerprints will provide data more quickly than Ohio’s prescription drug monitoring program, which has a one-week lag in uploading patient data.
