HCS HB 1619 -- DRUG MONITORING ACT (Jones, 117)

COMMITTEE OF ORIGIN:  Committee on Crime Prevention and Public
Safety

This substitute establishes the Drug Monitoring Act in the
Department of Health and Senior Services and changes the laws
regarding drugs and controlled substances.  In its main
provisions, the substitute:

(1)  Revises the current list of controlled substances;

(2)  Requires the department to develop a program, subject to
appropriations, to monitor the prescribing and dispensing of all
Schedule II through Schedule V controlled substances by all
licensed professionals who prescribe or dispense these substances
in Missouri;

(3)  Requires the dispenser to electronically submit to the
department information for each prescription and specifies the
frequency of the submissions;

(4)  Allows the department to issue a waiver to a dispenser who
is unable to submit the required information electronically.  If
a waiver is obtained, a dispenser can submit the required
information in paper format or by other approved means;

(5)  Requires all submitted prescription information to be
confidential.  Exceptions to this requirement include violations
of the law or breaches of professional standards which result in
an investigation and the submission or the release of
prescription information to authorized persons;

(6)  Specifies that any employee of a contractor who knowingly
discloses drug monitoring information other than as provided by
the provisions of the substitute or who uses the information in a
manner and for a purpose that is in violation of the provisions
of the substitute will be guilty of a class D felony;

(7)  Authorizes the release of non-personal, general information
for statistical, educational, or research purposes;

(8)  Authorizes the department to contract with other state
agencies or private vendors to implement the provisions of the
substitute and requires the department to develop an educational
course, when appropriate, to work with associations for impaired
professionals to ensure the intervention, treatment, and ongoing
monitoring of patients who have been identified as addicted to
substances monitored by the substitute; and

(9)  Requires a person selling pseudoephedrine products to keep
an electronic log of each transaction and specifies what
information must be recorded in the transaction log.

The substitute becomes effective January 1, 2009.  The provisions
of the substitute regarding the Drug Monitoring Act will expire
six years from the effective date.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Cost on General Revenue Fund of
$1,140,315 in FY 2009, $692,636 in FY 2010, and $699,042 in
FY 2011.  No impact on Other State Funds in FY 2009, FY 2010, and
FY 2011.

Missouri House of Representatives
94th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated October 15, 2008 at 3:10 pm