Bill Summary for Bill Number HB14-1283

Date: 03/06/2014

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB14-1283

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, INSURANCE, & ENVIRONMENT

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Amend printed bill, page 7, line 23, strike "may" Amend printed bill, page 8, line 7, after "directo Refer House Bill 14-1283, as amended, to the Commi	Pass Without Objection PASS

01:33 PM -- HB 14-1283

Representative McCann presented House Bill 14-1283. The bill modifies the electronic Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) to include:

authorizing the state board of pharmacy, in consultation with other state boards that oversee prescribing practitioners, to develop criteria for indicators of controlled substance misuse, abuse, and diversion and, based on those criteria, to disseminate unsolicited reports of prescription-specific data to prescribing practitioners and dispensing pharmacies to assist in preventing and reducing prescription drug misuse, abuse, and diversion;
allowing the Department of Public Health and Environment and Department of Health Care Policy and Finance to access the PDMP database for public health purposes and Medicaid patient care coordination, respectively;
allowing an out-of-state pharmacist to access the PDMP database in connection with a current patient to whom the pharmacist is dispensing a controlled substance or is providing clinical patient care services;
adding individual pharmacies as an eligible subject for information request by law enforcement officials if the request for information is accompanied by a court order or subpoena;
allowing a prescribing practitioner or a pharmacist to delegate authority to access the PDMP database to up to three designees acting for the practitioner or pharmacist, and requires each designee to register with the PDMP;
requiring by no later than January 1, 2015, prescribing practitioners and pharmacists to register and create user accounts with the PDMP;
allowing federally owned and operated pharmacies to submit data to the PDMP database; and
authorizing the executive director of the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) to create a PDMP task force, or to request assistance from the team assembled by the governor's office to develop a plan to reduce prescription drug abuse, to study the PDMP, and make recommendations to the executive director on ways to ensure that the PDMP is effective at reducing prescription drug abuse and misuse.

01:40 PM

Representative McCann responded to questions about the information the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing would access. A letter of support from Purdue Pharma L.P. was distributed (Attachment A).

140306 AttachA.pdf

01:41 PM -- Barbara Kelley, representing DORA, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the national and state efforts to reduce prescription drug abuse. Ms. Kelley provided a witness list (Attachment B).

140306 AttachB.pdf

01:44 PM -- Dr. Robert Valuck, representing the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention, testified in support of the bill. He discussed prescription drug abuse in Colorado and the Colorado Plan to Reduce Prescription Drug Abuse from September 2013. Dr. Valuck responded to questions about the average age of persons who die from prescription drug overdoses, the effectiveness of the PDMP, and whether providers are contributing to the prescription drug abuse problem through corrupt activities. He responded to questions about how many other states have similar PDMPs, the exclusion of Schedule I drugs from the controlled substances definition, and whether the PDMP would include medical marijuana and synthetic marijuana prescriptions.

01:56 PM -- Lauren Larson, representing DORA, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the current PDMP. Ms. Larson stated that only 30 percent of providers utilize the information in the PDMP database. She discussed the changes the bill makes to the PDMP, the additional improvements DORA is making to the PDMP, and privacy protections. Ms. Larson responded to questions about how a patient would know if someone accessed his or her information and the unsolicited report generated by the PDMP.

02:05 PM -- Hayes Veeneman, representing himself, testified in support of the bill. He discussed losing one son to an accidental prescription drug overdose, another son who is currently struggling with prescription drug addiction, and the need for enhancements to the PDMP.

02:10 PM -- Dr. Patricia VanDevander, representing the Colorado Medical Society, testified in support of the bill. She discussed delegated access and unsolicited reports. Dr. VanDevander responded to questions about how practitioners would select their designated delegates.

02:14 PM -- Kristi Mihok, representing the Colorado Pharmacists Society, testified in support of the bill. She discussed delegated access and unsolicited reports. Ms. Mihok responded to questions about mail-order pharmacies.

02:17 PM -- Constance McMenamin, representing the Colorado Nurses Association, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the importance of prescribing opiates appropriately and the ease of use of the PDMP.

02:19 PM -- Dr. Brett Kessler, representing the Colorado Dental Association, testified in support of the bill. He discussed his use of the PDMP, how the mandatory registration requirements will improve awareness of the PDMP, and how the PDMP can help detect prescription fraud.

02:22 PM -- Kathi Williams, representing the Colorado Optometric Association, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the Colorado Optometric Association's members use of the PDMP and the training her organization is offering to its members on the PDMP.

02:24 PM -- David Blake, representing the Colorado Attorney General's Office, testified in support of the bill. He discussed the Attorney General's Office's efforts to address prescription drug abuse. Mr. Blake stated that more needs to be done to address prescription drug abuse. He relayed statistics about prescription drug use and misuse. He stated that the bill does not require the pro-active reporting of findings to law enforcement agencies. Mr. Blake discussed the possible unintended consequences of the unsolicited reports, the participation of the Attorney General's Office in the PDMP task force, and whether allowing law enforcement access to PDMP information creates privacy concerns. He stated that more needs to be done to address prescription drug abuse. Mr. Blake responded to questions about protecting private information, why law enforcement would need to access patient names, and whether pill shopping is illegal. Representative McCann stated that DORA would follow up on questions about whether the PDMP data is encrypted.

02:52 PM

Mr. Blake reiterated the Attorney General Office's support of the bill. He responded to questions about the unsolicited reports and shared statistics about prescription drug abuse in Colorado.

02:58 PM

Dr. Valuck returned to the table to respond to questions about the number of pill mill cases discovered through PDMPs, whether prescriptions for drugs containing THC would be included in the PDMP, and whether federal pharmacies are required to report information to the PDMP.

03:02 PM -- Dr. Judy Zerzan, representing the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, testified on the bill. She discussed how the department would use the PDMP data.

03:09 PM

Representative McNulty offered a conceptual amendment concerning requiring the task force to convene and the task force's duties. The committee discussed the amendment.


BILL:	HB14-1283
TIME:	03:11:20 PM
MOVED:	McNulty
MOTION:	Amend printed bill, page 7, line 23, strike "may" and substitute "shall", and include in the task force's duties the review of data security and the use of personal information. The motion was withdrawn.
SECONDED:	Ginal
		VOTE
	Fields
	Ginal
	Humphrey
	Joshi	Excused
	Landgraf	Excused
	McNulty
	Primavera
	Singer
	Swalm
	Schafer
	McCann

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION:


BILL:	HB14-1283
TIME:	03:14:13 PM
MOVED:	Humphrey
MOTION:	Amend printed bill, page 8, line 7, after "director" insert "and the general assembly". The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	McNulty
		VOTE
	Fields
	Ginal
	Humphrey
	Joshi	Excused
	Landgraf	Excused
	McNulty
	Primavera
	Singer
	Swalm
	Schafer
	McCann

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

03:14 PM

Representative McCann made concluding remarks about the bill. Clare Pramuk, representing Legislative Council, responded to questions about the bill's routing. The committee discussed the bill.


BILL:	HB14-1283
TIME:	03:19:26 PM
MOVED:	McCann
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 14-1283, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a vote of 7-2, with 2 members excused.
SECONDED:	Ginal
		VOTE
	Fields	Yes
	Ginal	Yes
	Humphrey	No
	Joshi	Excused
	Landgraf	Excused
	McNulty	No
	Primavera	Yes
	Singer	Yes
	Swalm	Yes
	Schafer	Yes
	McCann	Yes

Final YES: 7 NO: 2 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:21 PM

Representatives Schafer and McCann made announcements about the committee's schedule for the following week. The committee adjourned.