KwikMed

KwikMed
Industry Healthcare
Founded 2001
Founder Peter Ax, CEO
Headquarters Scottsdale, Arizona, United States
Website http://www.kwikmed.com/

KwikMed is an approved online pharmacy in the United States which has been granted regulatory approval to operate and sell medications online. Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, KwikMed's parent company, Phoenix Capital Management, is located in Scottsdale, Arizona. Specifically, KwikMed has been granted regulatory approval to prescribe medications for erectile dysfunction, male pattern hair loss and smoking cessation provided specific operating procedures are followed.[1][2]

KwikMed has been involved in the creation of legislation in the state of Utah focused on creating a structural framework for the delivery of healthcare online and for the fulfillment of prescriptions on the Internet. On March 30, 2010, the State of Utah became the first state to establish a regulatory board specifically focused on regulating Internet pharmacies. This regulatory board is composed of experts in the healthcare field who are focused on facilitating the safe and effective delivery of health care online.[3] Utah signed into law S.B. 274, the "Online Prescribing, Dispensing, and Facilitation Act" which was sponsored by Utah State Senator Curt Bramble and Representative Rebecca D. Lockhart.

Company history

Introduction

October 16, 2001 - KwikMed was purchased by Peter Ax, managing partner of Phoenix Capital Management (PCM). Peter Ax was formerly senior vice president and head of private equity at Lehman Brothers where he was responsible for the institutional private placement of late stage venture capital financing. The previous owners of KwikMed were criminally prosecuted for writing prescriptions on the Internet without a valid physician and for illegally repackaged medications obtained from a drug wholesaler.

The cornerstone of KwikMed's health delivery system has been the creation of advanced software which takes a complete online medical history of the patient by asking specific questions of the patient. Depending upon how the patient responds, additional questions may be asked. All of the patient data collected during that online interview is compared to standardized medical scales to see if the patient is an alcoholic, is suffering from a mental illness, smokes too much, has an aggressive personality, etc... All of this information is collected by KwikMed physicians who then make a determination to 1) treat the patient with the patient requested medication, 2) suggest alternatives therapies for the patient, 3) collect additional data by email or phone call, 4)that the patient must be treated in a face-to-face setting and not allow any prescription to be written for this patient.

Time line

Regulatory movement

Since 2001, Peter Ax and KwikMed have been involved in the development of regulatory standards for online pharmacy safety. Through discussions with physicians, medical experts, state and federal legislators, and regulators, KwikMed has developed a version of an electronic medical record and patented online medical assessment software that has become a standard for the online prescribing of medications. Recently enacted Utah legislation codified KwikMed business practices in what has become the standard for states wanting to enact legislation to regulate and protect its citizens. In 2010 Utah passed the Online Prescribing, Dispensing, and Facilitation Act . The audio version of the Utah state legislature hearing is also available online.

The first face to face meeting between and among PCM, its counsel, members of the Utah DOPL and representatives of the Utah Attorney General's office took place in February 2002. During this meeting the following was established -

Utah DOPL and PCM enter into The Utah Consent Order in December 2002. The Consent Order required KwikMed (PCM) to design and implement an appropriate interactive medical assessment tool to be used by website users to ensure that each user provides a complete detailed medical history and physical evaluation sufficient to enable PCM's contract physicians to establish a diagnosis and to identify underlying conditions and/or contra-indications to the treatments recommended by those physicians. By the terms of this agreement, PCM was required to secure the DOPL's approval before any additional drugs could be prescribed and dispensed via the website. These medications included the erectile dysfunction medication Viagra and the male pattern hair loss medication Propecia. Although DOPL originally granted approval for PCM to dispense the weight loss drug Xenical and the arthritis medication Celebrex, PCM later asked to have these two removed from its approved list of drugs based on PCM's concern over the safety of these medications. Later, two addition erectile dysfunction medications, Cialis and Levitra, and the smoking cessation medication,Chantix, were added to the list of approved medications for PCM to distribute with a valid prescription.

Additionally, by entering into the Consent Order, PCM agreed to allow the DOPL representatives to access PCM's contract physicians and pharmacies to inspect medical and pharmacy records, as permitted by state regulations.

"Safety of Prescribing PDE-5 Inhibitors via e-Medicine vs Traditional Medicine"

University of Utah research as listed in Mayo Clinic Proceedings

In August 2008, the Mayo Clinic Proceedings vol. 83 no. 8 issue[11] included published the findings of research conducted at the University of Utah. This research compared KwikMed's model for the online delivery of healthcare to more traditional interactions between physicians and patients which typically take place in a face-to-face office setting.

The following researchers took part in the study: Mark A. Munger, PharmD; Gregory J. Stoddard, MS; Allen R. Wenner, MD; John W. Bachman, MD; John H. Jurige, MD; Laura Poe, RN; and Diana L. Baker, RN.

The objective: to discover if an online medical consultation could diagnosis and treat erectile dysfunction as safely as a traditional face-to-face visit with a physician.

The study was designed with by comparing electronic medical records. 102,734 of these records came from KwikMed and 110,000 were the University of Utah multidisciplinary primary care systems records. The study then consisted of 500 stratified random sampling of e-medicine records.

Statistical analysis

Demographics, medical history, drug history

Safety comparisons

Unmatched samples (balancing groups)

Results

Physical examination

  • Complete (including genitalia): 19.8%
  • Partial (no genitalia): 47%
  • No exam done: 32.2%
  • General medical examination

Median: < 1 year

ED prescription outcomes

  • 100% prescribed (face-to-face)
  • 8.3% phone requests prescribed
  • 9.4% assessed inappropriate by study investigators
  • 83% prescribed (software only)
  • 95.4% prescribed after MD consultation
  • 4.6% prescription denied
  • 2.2% assessed as inappropriate by study investigators

Results

Conclusions

  1. First independent, comprehensive study of a regulated Internet prescribing system
  2. The e-medicine system matches or exceeds all traditional medical practice in all aspects of patient safety
  3. State regulatory agencies should consider licensing Internet prescribing companies

See also

Online pharmacy e-medicine Virtual pharmacy

References

  1. ↑ Michael Winter, "In Utah, a push to expand online prescriptions nationwide", USA Today, January 5, 1010, retrieved February 26, 2014
  2. ↑ Bob Tedeschi, "Pharmacies Endorse Crackdown on Fraud", New York Times, October 24, 2005, retrieved February 26, 2014, Quote "That distinction [writing prescriptions without a physical exam] comes courtesy of the State of Utah, which in 2003 issued the company a license to operate after reviewing KwikMed's diagnostic software and medical procedures."
  3. ↑ Dupont,C (2010) Online Pharmacy Amendments -- Bramble, C Utah State Legislature
  4. ↑ (2004).Internet Drug SalesFDA.gov
  5. ↑ Layman, K. Salvatore, Martin, M. (2007).Internet Prescribing: It’s Fast and Easy,But Is It Legal?VOLUME 12, ISSUE 7 / JANUARY 2007 Litigation Reporter
  6. ↑ (2004) Utah State Bulletin Utah.gov
  7. ↑ Angwin, J. Bialik, C. (2004).Online Dispenser of Drugs Wants Some Respect The Wall Street Journal Online
  8. ↑ (2007). Minutes of the Senate Health and Human Services January 26, 2007 Utah.gov
  9. ↑ (2010)Utah Online Prescribing, Dispensing and Facilitation LawUtah.gov/laws
  10. ↑ (2010). Past Audio Floor Debates for SB0274 Utah.gov
  11. ↑ (2008. "Safety of Prescribing PDE-5 Inhibitors via e-Medicine vs Traditional Medicine" Mayo Clinic Proceedings

External links

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