Provider Connection
Express Scripts Physician Outreach Program – Morphine Equivalent Dose (MED)
MSF has been working with Express Scripts, our pharmacy benefit manager, to establish a proactive, aggressive approach to reduce the potential for opioid misuse or abuse by injured workers. Morphine Equivalent Dose (MED) is the calculation used to determine a narcotic medication’s morphine-like potency in conjunction with its dosage. Determining a narcotic’s MED is an essential safety factor as one study has shown patients receiving a MED of 100mg or more per day have a 9-fold increase in risk of overdose.
Express Scripts will be calculating the MED levels for the individual prescription and the cumulative levels of narcotics prescribed for an injured worker. Prescriptions exceeding a threshold MED limit will be flagged for review by our claims examiners and medical staff for prior authorization. Express Scripts will also be sending letters to prescribers for injured workers who are exceeding 120 MED or more per day.
