In the spring the Texas legislature passed a new law that limits physicians treating acute pain to a ten day supply of opioid prescriptions effective September 1, and beginning in March of 2020 the prescriptions can only be filed electronically through the state‘s Prescription Monitoring Program.
“There will be a limit on how much opioid medication a doctor can prescribe for acute pain. The limit will be ten days,” reinforces family physician Dr. Troy Fiesinger, who practices in Sugar Land.
It’s an attempt to fight abuse and fraud in Texas. The limitation doesn’t have an impact on patients with chronic pain, including those suffering from cancer or who are in hospice.
“We’ll have to check the state pharmacy board Prescription Monitoring Program whenever we prescribe medicines classified as controlled substances. That includes opioids, certain tranquilizers and certain muscle relaxers,” says Dr. Fiesinger. He and other physicians with the Texas Medical Association lobbied state representatives to extend the deadline for compliance with the Prescription Monitoring Program from September until next March to allow extra time for all involved parties to fully integrate their systems.