What heavily influenced the path toward widespread electronic prescribing adoption in the United States?

Regulatory incentives and federal mandates

In contrast to organic technological development seen elsewhere, the adoption of widespread electronic prescribing in the United States was primarily driven by legislative action and financial motivation. The push intensified significantly in the early 2000s, strongly tied to federal incentives established to promote the use of certified electronic health technology. Key legislation, such as the HITECH Act, provided incentives that naturally encouraged the inclusion and use of e-prescribing capabilities within certified Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems. This regulatory framework was instrumental in propelling e-prescribing from a specialized feature used by early adopters into a commonplace practice across the healthcare landscape, overcoming the slow initial uptake rate.