California to unveil online drug database

The Associated Press
5:16 p.m. September 14, 2009

LOS ANGELES — California will join more than 20 states by providing doctors and pharmacies with a secure Web site to track a patient's prescription drug use history.

Attorney General Jerry Brown on Tuesday plans to unveil the online portal that aims to curb prescription drug abuse by making information more readily available and cut down doctor shopping.

The move will enhance the state's prescription drug database that has about 100 million drug prescriptions. Under the previous system, doctors and pharmacists had to request information by fax or phone that could take a couple of days.

The attorney general's office currently receives more than 60,000 requests annually for such information.

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