Surescripts

Surescripts
Name	Surescripts
Type	Private
Industry	Health information technology
Founded	2001
Headquarters	Arlington, Virginia, United States
Area served	United States
Key people	J. Michael Fitzpatrick
Products	e-prescribing, medication history, clinical messaging
Num employees	1,000+

Surescripts Surescripts is a United States-based health information network that enables electronic prescribing, medication history exchange, and clinical messaging among pharmacies, clinicians, and payers. Founded in the early 21st century, the organization connects electronic health record vendors, retail chains, pharmacy benefit managers, and governmental entities to support medication management and health information exchange. Its network and services intersect with regulatory frameworks, major technology vendors, and healthcare organizations across the nation.

History

Founded in 2001 amid federal initiatives to modernize healthcare, the organization emerged during the expansion of electronic health records championed by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act and discussions involving the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Early years involved collaborations with pharmacy chains such as CVS Health, Walgreens Boots Alliance, and pharmacy benefit managers including Express Scripts and CVS Caremark. Over time, partnerships broadened to include electronic health record vendors like Epic Systems, Cerner Corporation, and Allscripts, as well as federal programs and private insurers such as UnitedHealth Group and Anthem, Inc.. Key milestones included scaling e-prescribing, integrating controlled substance prescription workflows in response to policies by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and expanding medication history services tied to interoperability efforts promoted by the 21st Century Cures Act.

Services and Products

The network provides e-prescribing services that interface with ambulatory and inpatient EHRs from vendors such as Epic Systems, Cerner Corporation, athenahealth, and MEDITECH; retail pharmacy systems from Rite Aid, Walmart, and CVS Health; and payers like Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Other offerings include medication history aggregation used by health systems like Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic, clinical messaging adopted by clinical organizations like Johns Hopkins Hospital and Kaiser Permanente, and pharmacy benefit connectivity involving Express Scripts and Prime Therapeutics. The organization also supports components used in public health programs administered by agencies such as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health departments. Products encompass tools for prescription routing, formulary and benefits checks integrating with PBMs, and analytics services consumed by health systems and insurers.

Technology and Infrastructure

The underlying infrastructure relies on secure health information exchange standards and integrations with EHR vendors including Epic Systems, Cerner Corporation, and Allscripts. Technical implementation leverages transaction standards that align with regulatory frameworks influenced by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and certification programs overseen by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. The network supports high-volume transaction processing connecting retail chains like Walgreens Boots Alliance and CVS Health with prescribers at institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital and Mount Sinai Health System. To handle controlled-substance prescriptions, the platform incorporated APIs and workflows consistent with directives from the Drug Enforcement Administration and integrations with state prescription drug monitoring programs administered by individual state health agencies.

Market Position and Partnerships

The organization occupies a central position in the U.S. e-prescribing and medication history market, partnering with major EHR vendors Epic Systems, Cerner Corporation, athenahealth, retail pharmacies including Walgreens Boots Alliance, CVS Health, Walmart, and PBMs such as Express Scripts and CVS Caremark. It competes and cooperates with regional health information exchanges like CommonWell Health Alliance and entities involved in interoperability such as The Sequoia Project. Strategic alliances extend to academic medical centers including Johns Hopkins Hospital and Mayo Clinic, insurer collaborations with UnitedHealth Group and Anthem, Inc., and participation in industry consortia that include trade groups and certification bodies.

Privacy, Security, and Compliance

Operations adhere to requirements influenced by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and reporting expectations from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Security measures are implemented to meet privacy frameworks invoked by federal agencies such as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and to support compliance with state-level prescription drug monitoring program statutes. The network must also adapt to policy shifts from the Drug Enforcement Administration and legislative changes stemming from acts like the 21st Century Cures Act that affect information blocking and interoperability. Collaborations with major health systems and vendors require contractual controls consistent with standards promoted by accreditation organizations and industry working groups.

Criticism and Controversies

The organization has faced scrutiny over topics including market concentration amid partnerships with large pharmacy chains and Express Scripts, concerns about transparency of routing and sourcing of medication history data involving entities like CVS Health and Walgreens Boots Alliance, and questions about competitive practices raised by healthcare stakeholders including independent pharmacies and regional health information exchanges such as CommonWell Health Alliance. Debates have touched on data governance, fees for transactions used by smaller EHR vendors and community pharmacies, and the role of dominant vendors like Epic Systems and Cerner Corporation in shaping interoperability pathways. Regulatory interest from federal agencies including the Federal Trade Commission and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has focused on market behavior, privacy safeguards under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, and compliance with anti-information-blocking provisions in the 21st Century Cures Act.

Category:Health information technology companies in the United States