New York Achieved Program Goals For Enhancing Its Prescription Drug Monitoring Program

WHY WE DID THIS REVIEW

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), opioids were involved in more than 47,000 deaths in 2017, and opioid deaths were 6 times higher in 2017 than in 1999. CDC has awarded funding to States to address the nonmedical use of prescription drugs and to address opioid overdoses. We are conducting a series of reviews of States that have received CDC funding to enhance their prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs). We selected New York for review because it experienced a significant increase in the rate of drug overdose deaths during 2016 and 2017.

Our objectives were to (1) identify actions that New York has taken, using Federal funds for improving PDMPs, to achieve program goals toward improving safe prescribing practices and preventing prescription drug abuse and misuse and (2) determine whether New York complied with certain Federal requirements.

HOW WE DID THIS REVIEW

Our review covered actions that New York has taken to enhance and maximize its PDMP and that it proposed for CDC's "Prescription Drug Overdose: Prevention for States" grant for March 2016, through August 2017. We examined New York's status of completing 13 proposed activities and reviewed documentation to determine whether it submitted reports and used funds in compliance with certain Federal requirements.

WHAT OIG FOUND

We identified actions that New York has taken, using Federal funds for improving PDMPs, to achieve program goals toward improving safe prescribing practices and preventing prescription drug abuse and misuse. As of August 2018, New York had completed the 13 federally funded activities it proposed to enhance its PDMP. Specifically, New York completed four activities related to the integration of its PDMP with electronic health records, four activities related to the use of mobile technology for the PDMP, and five activities related to public health surveillance.

New York complied with Federal requirements for submitting its Federal Financial Report and Annual Performance Report and reporting CDC-directed indicators (for awardees using PDMPs for public health surveillance). Additionally, with respect to the selected financial transactions we reviewed, New York used grant funds in accordance with Federal requirements.

WHAT OIG RECOMMENDS

This report contains no recommendations.