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Missouri Medicaid Audit and Compliance (MMAC) has recently seen
an increase in fraudulent prescriptions using a forged template similar to this
form. The forged prescriptions
have been passed in the St. Louis area and along Interstate 44 as far south
as Springfield, Missouri.
Please take note of the highlighted characteristics of these forged
prescription forms. Thus far, they have all shown St. Louis area
prescribers. The prescriptions are almost always for Oxycodone -Acetaminophen
10-325 and for quantities of 120 to 180 tablets. The patient addresses on
the prescriptions are not valid street addresses, and they are typically located
in the same city as the pharmacy where the forged prescription is being
presented.
In most of the cases seen so far, the prescriptions have been
presented in the evening when the doctor’s office is closed, making it
difficult to verify the prescription.
Unless an exception exists, MO HealthNet prescriptions must be
written on tamper-resistant paper. (Exceptions include prescriptions furnished
through a MO HealhNet managed care entity, prescriptions provided in certain
facilities such as nursing facilities and hospitals, and prescriptions faxed,
telephoned, or e-prescribed.) As a reminder, to be compliant with this
requirement, a prescription pad must contain the following characteristics:
- An industry-recognized feature designed to
prevent unauthorized copying of a completed or blank prescription form (such as
a high security watermark on the reverse of the blank or the use of
thermochromic ink)
- An industry-recognized feature designed to
prevent erasure or modification of information written on the prescription by
the prescriber (such as tamper-resistant background ink that shows erasures or
attempts to change written information)
- An industry-recognized feature designed to
prevent the use of counterfeit prescription forms (such as sequentially
numbered blanks or duplicate or triplicate blanks) In some of the recent incidents, the prescription did contain the
tamper-resistant background feature, highlighting the need to check for all
three features. If you have any questions, please contact MMAC at MMAC.REPORTFRAUD@dss.mo.gov
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