The PA Workflow
When you open a prior authorization (PA) task, the centerpiece of the detail page is the Workflow Timeline — a chronological record of every event in the PA’s life from evaluation through determination.
Reading the Workflow Timeline
The Workflow Timeline card appears on any task of type Prior authorization (initiation) or PA continuation. At the top of the card you will see:
- Medication chip — the drug being reviewed.
- Workflow state chip — the PA’s current stage (see table below).
- Task status chip — the underlying task status (open, completed, etc.).
If an AI summary is available, a blue AI Summary banner appears above the event list. It includes a plain-language summary of the PA status and a Next step line indicating what action — if any — is needed. You can dismiss the banner with the × button; if a summary is still being generated you will see a progress indicator instead.
Below the summary, the timeline lists each event in order: evaluations, outbox communications, data requests, determinations, and transitions. Select any event to see its details.
Workflow States
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Initial | Evaluation complete; waiting for the next automated step |
| Data Request | A data-request letter has been sent to the prescriber |
| Remediation | A custom data request has been sent to gather additional clinical data |
| Approved | PA determination letter approved and sent |
| Rejected | PA determination letter denied and sent |
| Renewed | A continuing PA has been approved for renewal |
| Discontinued | The PA has been discontinued |
| Appeals | An appeal has been filed against the determination |
| Abandoned | The PA was manually abandoned without a determination |
| Excluded Medication | The medication is excluded from PA requirements |
| Failed | A system error prevented the PA from completing |
Manual Transitions
When a PA task requires a human decision, you can manually move the workflow to a new state using the Transition button in the upper-right corner of the Workflow Timeline card.
Selecting Transition opens a menu labeled Manual PA transitions with the following options (available options vary by current state):
| Action | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Approve | You are approving the PA. A determination letter will be sent and PharmPix will be updated if configured for automatic contact. |
| Deny | You are denying the PA. A determination letter will be sent and PharmPix will be updated if configured for automatic contact. |
| Abandoned | The PA will not be worked further. This marks it abandoned without creating any follow-up child tasks. |
| Remediation | Opens the custom data request dialog so you can gather additional clinical data from the prescriber. |
| Closed | Closes the PA and cancels any open child tasks. |
After you select an action (other than Remediation), a confirmation dialog opens titled Manually [action] PA. You must enter a Reason before the Confirm button becomes active. After you confirm, the timeline refreshes to show the new state.
Note on Approve and Deny: These options are not shown when the PA is already in an approved or denied state, respectively.
Note on Abandoned: This option is only available when the PA is in the Initial, Data Request, or Remediation state.
Determination Letters on the Timeline
When a PA is approved, denied, or renewed, the timeline shows a Determination communication card with tabs for Prescriber, Patient, and Pharmacy. Each tab shows that recipient’s delivery status and mode (Manual or Automatic).
If a letter was Cancelled, Failed, Fax Failed, or Delivery Failed, select the affected recipient tab and choose Resend Letter (for automatic prescriber or pharmacy faxes) or Regenerate Letter (for patient letters or manual delivery). The system regenerates the PDF and, for automatic fax recipients, queues a new transmission. You can also open View Outbox Item for full delivery controls.
Use the Transition menu on an approved or renewed PA when you need to deny, request remediation, or close the workflow.
Sub-tasks
For every PA parent task, a Sub-tasks section appears below the Workflow Timeline. This table lists the child tasks that have been created automatically during the PA workflow — for example:
- Initiation — a PharmPix submission task
- Discontinue — a PharmPix revocation task
- Data request — a request for clinical data from the prescriber
- Rejection — a rejection-related communication task
Each sub-task shows its title, status, due date, and creation date. Select a sub-task row to open its detail page.
Child tasks of a PA workflow display a blue banner at the top of their detail page reading This task is part of a Prior Authorization workflow, with a View PA Workflow Timeline button that takes you back to the parent PA.
Error Banner
If the task or a PharmPix submission encounters an error, a red alert banner appears at the top of the task content area. The banner shows the error message. If a PharmPix-specific error is also present, it appears below the main error text.
For past errors, expand the Error History accordion (visible when system errors exist) to review the full history of errors and their timestamps.