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Mar 2024
Protect Your Patients and Your Practice: How to Comply with the Texas PMP Mandate
The Texas Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) is an educational patient care tool that helps inform prescribing practices and address prescription drug misuse, diversion and overdose. In March 2020, the Texas Legislature mandated physicians check the PMP before prescribing opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates or carisoprodol.
Know When to Check the Texas PMP
The mandate applies to all Texas physicians and outpatient facilities, and discharge prescriptions of opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates or carisoprodol However, a PMP check is not necessary under the following circumstances:
- When a patient has a cancer diagnosis, sickle cell disease or care provided by a licensed hospice provider.
- When a prescriber makes a good faith effort to access the PMP but cannot due to uncontrollable circumstances.
- Before or during an inpatient stay, such as a hospital admission.
- During an outpatient visit in settings like an emergency department or ambulatory surgical center.
Review the Full Texas PMP Patient Report
Some integrated electronic health records show only a patient score and not a full report when accessing a patient’s record. However, viewing the patient score alone is not enough to comply with the PMP lookup requirement. To comply with the mandate, physicians must review a full controlled substance history report for every patient every time.
Document Texas PMP Review
The Texas Medical Board requires physicians or advanced practice providers to document each time the patient’s PMP history is accessed in the patient’s medical record.
Explore opportunities to learn more about the Texas PMP and earn continuing medical education credit at txpmp.org.
