California Senate Bill SB616 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 616AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 27, 2012 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 26, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE JANUARY 4, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 26, 2011 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 22, 2011 INTRODUCED BY Senator DeSaulnier FEBRUARY 18, 2011 An act to amend Section 11165 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to controlled substances. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 616, as amended, DeSaulnier. Controlled substances: reporting. Existing law classifies certain controlled substances into designated schedules. Existing law requires the Department of Justice to maintain the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) for the electronic monitoring of the prescribing and dispensing of Schedule II, Schedule III, and Schedule IV controlled substances by all practitioners authorized to prescribe or dispense these controlled substances. Existing law requires dispensing pharmacies and clinics to report, on a weekly basis, specified information for each prescription of Schedule II, Schedule III, or Schedule IV controlled substances, to the department, as specified. This bill would  require that dispensing pharmacies and clinics report that information to the department twice a week  establish the CURES Fund within the state treasury to receive contributions to be allocated, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the Department of Justice for the purposes of the CURES program, and would make related findings and declarations  . Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  yes   no  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1   .   The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:   (a) The Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) is a valuable investigative, preventive, and educational tool for law enforcement, regulatory boards, educational researchers, and the health care community. Recent budget cuts to the Attorney General's Division of Law Enforcement have resulted in insufficient funding to support the CURES Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). The PDMP is necessary to ensure health care professionals have the necessary data to make informed treatment decisions and to allow law enforcement to investigate diversion of prescription drugs. Without a dedicated funding source, the CURES PDMP is not sustainable.   (b) Each year the CURES program responds to more than 60,000 requests from practitioners and pharmacists regarding all of the following:   (1) Helping identify and deter drug abuse and diversion of prescription drugs through accurate and rapid tracking of Schedule II, II, and IV controlled substances.   (2) Helping practitioners make better prescribing decisions.   (3) Helping reduce misuse, abuse, and trafficking of those drugs.   (c) Schedules II, III, and IV, controlled substances have had deleterious effects on private and public interests, including the misuse, abuse, and trafficking in dangerous prescription medications resulting in injury and death. It is the intent of the Legislature to work with stakeholders to fully fund the operation of the CURES program which seeks to mitigate those deleterious effects, and which has proven to be a cost-effective tool to help reduce the misuse, abuse, and trafficking of those drugs.   SECTION 1   SEC. 2  . Section 11165 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 11165. (a) To assist law enforcement and regulatory agencies in their efforts to control the diversion and resultant abuse of Schedule II, Schedule III, and Schedule IV controlled substances, and for statistical analysis, education, and research, the Department of Justice shall, contingent upon the availability of adequate funds from the Contingent Fund of the Medical Board of California, the Pharmacy Board Contingent Fund, the State Dentistry Fund, the Board of Registered Nursing Fund,  and  the Osteopathic Medical Board of California Contingent Fund,  and the CURES Fund,  maintain the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) for the electronic monitoring of, and Internet access to information regarding, the prescribing and dispensing of Schedule II, Schedule III, and Schedule IV controlled substances by all practitioners authorized to prescribe or dispense these controlled substances. (b) The reporting of Schedule III and Schedule IV controlled substance prescriptions to CURES shall be contingent upon the availability of adequate funds from the Department of Justice. The department may seek and use grant funds to pay the costs incurred from the reporting of controlled substance prescriptions to CURES. Funds shall not be appropriated from the Contingent Fund of the Medical Board of California, the Pharmacy Board Contingent Fund, the State Dentistry Fund, the Board of Registered Nursing Fund, the Naturopathic Doctor's Fund, or the Osteopathic Medical Board of California Contingent Fund to pay the costs of reporting Schedule III and Schedule IV controlled substance prescriptions to CURES. (c) CURES shall operate under existing provisions of law to safeguard the privacy and confidentiality of patients. Data obtained from CURES shall only be provided to appropriate state, local, and federal persons or public agencies for disciplinary, civil, or criminal purposes and to other agencies or entities, as determined by the Department of Justice, for the purpose of educating practitioners and others in lieu of disciplinary, civil, or criminal actions. Data may be provided to public or private entities, as approved by the Department of Justice, for educational, peer review, statistical, or research purposes, provided that patient information, including any information that may identify the patient, is not compromised. Further, data disclosed to any individual or agency as described in this subdivision shall not be disclosed, sold, or transferred to any third party. (d) For each prescription for a Schedule II, Schedule III, or Schedule IV controlled substance, as defined in the controlled substances schedules in federal law and regulations, specifically Sections 1308.12, 1308.13, and 1308.14, respectively, of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the dispensing pharmacy or clinic shall provide the following information to the Department of Justice  twice a week   on a weekly basis  and in a format specified by the Department of Justice: (1) Full name, address, and the telephone number of the ultimate user or research subject, or contact information as determined by the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and the gender, and date of birth of the ultimate user. (2) The prescriber's category of licensure and license number; federal controlled substance registration number; and the state medical license number of any prescriber using the federal controlled substance registration number of a government-exempt facility. (3) Pharmacy prescription number, license number, and federal controlled substance registration number. (4) NDC (National Drug Code) number of the controlled substance dispensed. (5) Quantity of the controlled substance dispensed. (6) ICD-9 (diagnosis code), if available. (7) Number of refills ordered. (8) Whether the drug was dispensed as a refill of a prescription or as a first-time request. (9) Date of origin of the prescription. (10) Date of dispensing of the prescription.  (e) The CURES Fund is hereby established within the State Treasury. The Cures Fund shall consist of all funds contributed by organizations for the purposes of funding the CURES program. Money in the CURES Fund shall, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be available for allocation to the Department of Justice for the purposes of funding the CURES program.