It had been announced for a long time, now it should come on July 1st: the e-prescription. By the end of July, 80 percent of all pharmacies should be equipped with readers. If you don’t have a smartphone, you can also use a printout.
According to Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, electronic prescriptions (e-prescriptions) should be possible from July 1st. “The e-prescription is finally suitable for everyday use,” said the SPD politician to the editorial network Germany.
“On July 1, 2023, patients will be able to easily access e-prescriptions in pharmacies for the first time using their insurance card. By the end of July, 80 percent of pharmacies in Germany are expected to be connected to the system.” Lauterbach added: “When the patients insert their insurance cards into the readers in the pharmacies, the e-prescription is already in the database. Digitization is now starting.”
Processes should be simplified
According to the Ministry of Health, the aim of the e-prescription is, among other things, to simplify processes in the doctor’s office and pharmacy and “to end the paper economy in the healthcare system”. In addition, drug treatment should become safer.
The start of electronic prescriptions had been delayed several times. Last autumn, further steps were put on hold in the only pilot region in Westphalia-Lippe. At the beginning of March, Lauterbach announced that it would significantly accelerate the sluggish spread of digital applications. Germany’s healthcare system is decades behind in digitization, he said.
E-prescription also possible as a printout
The e-prescription should be suitable for everyday use across the board. According to the ministry, it can be used in various ways. Patients could decide whether they want to manage their e-prescription on their smartphone using a secure e-prescription app and send it digitally to a pharmacy, or whether they want the access data required to redeem the e-prescription to be given to them as a paper printout in the doctor’s practice should.