Information for:
General Inquiries:
U.S. Headquarters
300 E. Lombard Street
Suite 1610
Baltimore, MD 21202
Phone (888) 494-2165
Fax (443) 220-0122
Laboratory
9930 West Highway 80
Midland, Texas 79706
Phone (888) 494-2165
Fax (432) 561-5721
Payers & Insurance Companies
You need to provide your members with the most effective care while managing costs. Ameritox pain medication monitoring solutionsSM goes beyond standard urine drug testing to provide physicians with a more complete picture of your members’ pain medication use. With this unique insight, your organization can optimize patient outcomes, reduce health care costs and improve the overall quality of care.
Why Pain Medication Monitoring?
An estimated one in four Americans suffers from chronic pain.1 It is a primary reason that people seek medical care and a significant driver of health care costs. According to the Federal Drug Administration, more than 21 million opioid pain prescriptions were written in 2007.
However, a recent national study showed that, for a variety of reasons, up to 75% of pain patients may not be using their pain medication properly.2 This pervasive misuse or abuse is due to everything from patients simply choosing not to take their medication to taking too much medication because of inadequate pain control or addiction. While this information and insight is important to treating physicians for the better care of their patients, it’s also critical for payers. The medical costs of misuse and abuse are very high.
- The average patient on chronic opioid therapy (COT) is equal to or greater than $25,000 per year in total medical costs.3
- Patients who have normal testing as prescribed have $3,300 in lower costs.3
- A recent study of 2 million insureds found that opiate abusers averaged more than $14,000 in direct costs per patient over non-abusers in physicians visits, outpatient costs, inpatient costs and drug costs.4
- Another study concluded that patients who adhere to their prescription regimens (without evidence of potential misuse, diversion or illicit drugs) have 8 to 10% lower medical costs.3
Ameritox—The Power to Understand More
As the leading provider of pain medication monitoring, Ameritox helps physicians determine if a patient is taking his or her pain medication as prescribed. This critical insight and knowledge allows all those involved to make more informed decisions regarding pain management and achieve better outcomes. By achieving better outcomes, payers can lower the costs of managing this “chronic disease.” When patients are taking their medication as prescribed, payers can control—even reduce—costs, optimize patient outcomes and improve the overall quality of chronic pain management for all their members. To learn how Ameritox pain medication monitoring solutions can help you lower costs while providing more efficient and effective chronic pain management, call our Managed Care Support Team at (888) 494-2165 or email sean.hurley@ameritox.com.
As a pioneer in pain medication monitoring solutions, only Ameritox offers the comprehensive solutions physicians need to achieve the best possible outcomes. From our superior laboratory services and innovative technologies to our exceptional service and support, we provide the vital information and assurance necessary to manage chronic pain effectively.
The Ameritox Rx GuardianSM Process
1. Laboratory Testing and Proprietary Methods of Analysis
You can be assured that our specialized laboratory services provide the most sensitive and specific testing available. The Rx Guardian process identifies the specific drug or metabolite for a broad range of controlled medications. Every initial positive result is confirmed. Our process exceeds the most demanding standards and may include the following tests:
- Enzyme Immunoassay (EIA)
- Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)
- Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS)
- Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC/MS/MS)
The Rx Guardian process also quantifies the specific drug or metabolite found in each sample, providing the physician with the specific amount of drug or metabolite detected. Ameritox then applies its patented methods using patient specific factors and urine drug test results to produce a normalized value. This normalized value is then compared to an expected range for some of the most common prescribed medications.
After testing is complete, Ameritox Certifying Scientists review and validate each result for a final check of accuracy.
2. Results: The Rx Guardian Results Report
The comprehensive and easy-to-interpret Rx Guardian results report indicates where any test results may be inconsistent with the treatment plan—along with explanations of any findings. The Rx Guardian results report is the only report that can help physicians determine whether patients are taking their prescribed pain medications in a manner consistent with their prescribed regimen. In addition, experienced Ameritox Toxicology SpecialistsSM are available for consultation on results.
Unmatched Support for Physicians and Payers
Ameritox pain medication monitoring solutions have been designed to make urine drug monitoring as easy and efficient as possible for physicians, patients and payers.
Our support is unsurpassed, going far beyond the service offered by traditional labs. We deliver extensive training and support services, resources, tools and reporting—all to bring pain treatment costs under control and improve your chronic pain management programs. For physicians and clinical staff:
- Dedicated Account Managers work with physicians and staff to integrate urine drug monitoring into their continuum of chronic pain management.
- Ameritox Online ServicesSM bring added efficiency to requisitions and reporting.
- Rx Guardian AutoReminderSM independently and randomly selects patients for monitoring based on a protocol selected by the practitioner to eliminate guesswork and potential bias.
- Ameritox Practice ProfilesSM provide vital indicators of both patient and practice progress.
- Experienced Ameritox Toxicology Specialists are available for consultation on results.
- Direct billing support is available for patients.
Ameritox also works with payers to maximize the value of pain medication monitoring, and minimize the time required to monitor. We provide:
- A dedicated Ameritox Account Management team for ongoing consultation and administrative support.
- Extensive patient data, customized practice profiles and reports for better pain care management strategies and programs.
Only Ameritox combines expertise, laboratory science and innovation with exceptional service support. It’s a combination that’s proving essential for improving the quality and cost effectiveness of chronic pain management.
Notes
1APF Pain Facts: Overview of Pain Surveys, 2007
2 Couto JE, Goldfarb NI , Leider HL , Romney MC , Sharma S. High rates of inappropriate drug use in the chronic pain population. Population Health Manag. 2009;12(4):185-190.
3 Leider, HL, unpublished data, 2007.
4Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy, 2005;11(6): 469-79.
