Wyoming WORx Data Request
| Submitted | Aug. 28, 2019 |
| Est. Completion | None |
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Communications
From: HIJ Action Lab
To Whom It May Concern:
Northeastern University's School of Social Justice and Health Equity is interested in the Wyoming Prescription Monitoring Program, WORx. Specifically, we want to learn more about law enforcement access to the database, the use of an algorithm that produces a risk score to analyze its contents, and the data access and retention rules governing the system.
In order to permit the public to understand how the Wyoming Board of Pharmacy is using WORx and how it impacts public health and civil liberties in Wyoming, Northeastern University's Health in Justice Action Lab is making this request under Wyoming Sunshine Law, §16-4-201 et seq., for the following records:
1. Any and all records including information about the algorithm that determines risk scores in WORx, including but not limited to its source code, developer documentation, and operator manuals;
2. Any and all research, technical reports, or internal audits that evaluate WORx’s risk assessment tool’s effectiveness or performance;
3. Any and all records of de-identified red flag algorithm outputs specific to WORx system and patient behavioral red flags (e.g., anxious patient demeanor, distance between prescriber and dispenser) with prescriber/dispenser training documentation on how to address the red flags;
4. Any and all records 2006-present of notification to law enforcement about information in WORx designated review group or other channels, including but not limited to how many times law enforcement agencies have been notified about information in WORx, and which agencies have been notified;
Because this request involves a matter of public concern and because it is made on behalf of a nonprofit organization, we ask that you waive any fees. If you decide not to waive fees, we request that you permit us to examine, at our election, the responsive documents before deciding which portions to transmit. We prefer the documents in electronic format.
Should you determine that some portion of the documents requested are exempt from disclosure, please release any reasonably segregable portions that are not exempt. In addition, please note the applicable statutory exemption and explain why it applies to the redacted portions. As you know, a custodian of public records shall comply with a request within ten days after receipt.
Than you for your assistance and we look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Sarah Seymour
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Good morning Sarah,
Thank you for contacting the Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy. Below I have
provided answers to your questions.
1. Any and all records including information about the algorithm that
determines risk scores in WORx, including but not limited to its source
code, developer documentation, and operator manuals;
The Wyoming Online Prescription database (WORx) does not have or make use
of a computer algorithm to determine risk scores. As such we do not have
any information we can provide regarding source code, developer
documentation, or operator manuals.
2. Any and all research, technical reports, or internal audits that
evaluate WORx’s risk assessment tool’s effectiveness or performance;
Please see above. The WORx program does not have such a risk assessment
tool.
3. Any and all records of de-identified red flag algorithm outputs specific
to WORx system and patient behavioral red flags (e.g., anxious patient
demeanor, distance between prescriber and dispenser) with
prescriber/dispenser training documentation on how to address the red flags;
We do not have any records of de-identified red flag algorithm outputs. The
only thing we have that may may be responsive to your inquiry are our
multiple provider episode (commonly known as doctor shopping) letters. I
have attached a blank version of that form letter.
4. Any and all records 2006-present of notification to law enforcement
about information in WORx designated review group or other channels,
including but not limited to how many times law enforcement agencies have
been notified about information in WORx, and which agencies have been
notified;
We do not have any records of notification to law enforcement agencies
about information in the WORx program. We do receive requests from law
enforcement agencies that we respond to individually. I have attached a
copy of the form that they provide to us when asking for information
contained in WORx. If you would like to know the number of law enforcement
requests from 2006-present, we could provide that number, however it would
take us longer than 10 days. Our states rules allow us to charge if the
request would cost more than $180. Given the time that would be required to
de-identify those records we would not be able to waive the fee associated
with providing that information.
Sincerely,
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
Executive Director
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
Could you provide a more concise cost estimate for #4 in relation to requesting the number of LE requests. Thank you for your time and patience.
Sincerely,
Allison McBride
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Wyoming Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Aug. 28, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Good morning Alison,
I apologize for the delay in responding to your September 18 email. I have
been out of the office frequently of late due to meetings and sickness. On
September 18 you asked:
"Could you provide a more concise cost estimate for #4 in relation to
requesting the number of LE requests. Thank you for your time and patience."
In the original request, we indicated that we could provide the number of
law enforcement requests but that doing so could require more than 10 days'
time.
We also reported that our state's rules allow us to charge if the request
would cost more than $180. Per Wyoming's rules the cost may include, but is
not limited to, the time spent retrieving, compiling, sorting, reviewing,
redacting, formatting, converting, or copying the public record at a rate
of up to $40/hr for professional staff time. We would exceed the minimum
($180) after only 4.5 hours of retrieving, compiling, sorting, reviewing,
redacting, etc. etc.13 years worth of records as requested.
Your request is unclear whether you are wanting to know the number of law
enforcement requests or if you are wanting copies of the law enforcement
requests from the past 13 years.
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
Executive Director
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
We are only requesting the number of law enforcement queries from 2006-present. We are also requesting the number of law enforcement queries accepted and denied over that time period as well if that is available. Let me know if this below the $180 threshold. Thank you for your help and patience!
Best,
Allison
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
I will be out of the office and will not be able to respond to emails
until October 14, 2019. Please email bop@wyo.gov should you need
immediate assistance.
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Wyoming Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Aug. 28, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Good morning Alison,
Below are the number of law enforcement queries from 2006-present broke
down into the number of law enforcement queries accepted and denied over
that time period. The Board did not begin to archive this information until
2014.
Year Approved Denied Total
2006 0
2007 0
2008 0
2009 0
2010 0
2011 0
2012 0
2013 0
2014 293 0 293
2015 361 0 361
2016 456 2 458
2017 445 1 446
2018 448 0 448
2019 248 2 250
Sincerely,
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
Thank you so much. Hope you have a great rest of the week.
Best,
Allison
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
I will be out of the office and will not be able to respond to emails
until November 4, 2019. Please email bop@wyo.gov should you need
immediate assistance.
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
Hope you are doing well and staying safe. In our original request, we asked for the number of patients within the PDMP. Your department did provide patient numbers from 2004 to 2009 in the 2011 Final Report. Is there any chance y'all have numbers for recent years? Let me know when you get a chance. Thanks!
Best,
Sarah
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Good morning Sarah,
Can you clarify what you are asking for? The numbers we reported were the
number of law enforcement requests accepted/denied and were current as of
the date we reported. Are you wanting to know how many more we have
received since then?
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
We are requesting an updated number of patients that are currently or as of the past 5 years in the PDMP system. Let me know if you need further clarification. Thank you.
Best,
Sarah
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Hi Sarah,
I will need to coordinate with our vendor to obtain this number. This may
also take longer than expected due to everything going on with COVID-19
across the country.
Sincerely,
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Good afternoon Sarah,
Here is the information requested. Total number of patient records from
2015-2019 is: 736083
*Year*
*# of Patients*
*2015*
226911
*2016*
231223
*2017*
221948
*2018*
216213
*2019*
214396
Please keep in mind, there are many patients with duplicate records due to
the way their information is entered by the different
pharmacies/pharmacists. For example, names/addresses may be the same but
spelled differently (e.g. Street/St, Avenue/Ave), or patients may appear
with variations of their name (ex: Chris/Christopher, Robert/Bob/Rob).
Wyoming does not utilize any type of patient matching to combine duplicate
patient records into one record for one unique individual.
Sincerely,
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi,
Thanks so much for your help with this request! I really appreciate it and I will keep that in mind.
Best,
Sarah Seymour
From: HIJ Action Lab
Hi Matthew,
Last one, I promise. Does your department have the following:
Documents detailing patient behavioral red flags (e.g., anxious patient demeanor, distance between prescriber and dispenser) with prescriber/dispenser training documentation on how to address the red flags
Let me know when you have the time. Thank you in advance.
Best,
Sarah
From: Wyoming Board Of Pharmacy
Hi Sarah,
We don't have any documents that detail patient behavioral red flags or
prescriber/dispenser training documentation on how to address the red
flags.
Sincerely
--
Matthew R. Martineau, PharmD, RPh
Executive Director
Wyoming State Board of Pharmacy
1712 Carey Avenue, Suite 200
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Telephone: (307) 634-9636
Fax: (307) 634-6335
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act and may be disclosed
to third parties.
--
E-Mail to and from me, in connection with the transaction
of public
business, is subject to the Wyoming Public Records
Act and may be
disclosed to third parties.
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