Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 288 First Substitute (2023GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Welton, D.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/15/2023

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• requires a pharmacist who dispenses opioids to a patient to:
• provide patient counseling on the use and availability of opioid antagonists; and
• offer an opioid antagonist to the patient or the patient's representative for certain opiate prescriptions; and
• requires a health care provider who prescribes opioids to include a prescription for an opioid antagonist under certain circumstances.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

OPIOID DISPENSING REQUIREMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Douglas R. Welton
Senate Sponsor: 
 Jen Plumb
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill creates certain requirements for the dispensing of opioids.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ requires a pharmacist who dispenses opioids to a patient to:
• provide patient counseling on the use and availability of opioid antagonists; and
• offer an opioid antagonist to the patient or the patient's representative for certain
opiate prescriptions; and
▸ requires a health care provider who prescribes opioids to include a prescription for
an opioid antagonist under certain circumstances. 
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
58-37-7
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 145
58-37-19
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 130
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
58-37-7
 is amended to read:
58-37-7.
Labeling and packaging controlled substance -- Informational pamphlet
for opiates - Naloxone education and offer to dispense.
(1) A person licensed pursuant to this act may not distribute a controlled substance
unless it is packaged and labeled in compliance with the requirements of Section 305 of the
Federal Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970.
(2) No person except a pharmacist for the purpose of filling a prescription shall alter,
deface, or remove any label affixed by the manufacturer.
(3) Whenever a pharmacist sells or dispenses any controlled substance on a
prescription issued by a practitioner, the pharmacist shall affix to the container in which the
substance is sold or dispensed:
(a) a label showing the:
(i) pharmacy name and address;
(ii) serial number; and
(iii) date of initial filling;
(b) the prescription number, the name of the patient, or if the patient is an animal, the
name of the owner of the animal and the species of the animal;
(c) the name of the practitioner by whom the prescription was written;
(d) any directions stated on the prescription; and
(e) any directions required by rules and regulations promulgated by the department.
(4) Whenever a pharmacist sells or dispenses a Schedule II or Schedule III controlled
substance that is an opiate, a pharmacist shall
:
(a)
 affix a warning to the container or the lid for the container in which the substance is
sold or dispensed that contains the following text:
[
(a)
] 
(i)
 "Caution: Opioid. Risk of overdose and addiction"; or
[
(b)
] 
(ii)
 any other language that is approved by the Department of Health[
.
] 
and
Human Services;
(b) provide counseling to the patient or the patient's representative on the use and
availability of an opioid antagonist as defined in Section 
26-55-102
; and
(c) offer to dispense an opioid antagonist as defined in Section 
26-55-102
 to the patient
or the patient's representative, under a prescription from a practitioner or under Section
26-55-105
, if the patient:
(i) receives a single prescription for 50 morphine milligram equivalents calculated in
accordance with guidelines developed by the United States Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention;
(ii) is being dispensed an opioid and the patient has been prescribed a benzodiazepine
in the previous 30 day period; or
(iii) is being dispensed a benzodiazepine and the patient has been prescribed an opioid
in the previous 30 day period.
(5) (a) A pharmacist who sells or dispenses a Schedule II or Schedule III controlled
substance that is an opiate shall, if available from the Department of Health 
and Human
Services
, prominently display at the point of sale the informational pamphlet developed by the
Department of Health 
and Human Services
 under Section 
26-55-109
.
(b) The board and the Department of Health 
and Human Services
 shall encourage
pharmacists to use the informational pamphlet to engage in patient counseling regarding the
risks associated with taking opiates.
(c) The requirement in Subsection (5)(a) does not apply to a pharmacist if the
pharmacist is unable to obtain the informational pamphlet from the Department of Health 
and
Human Services
 for any reason.
(6) A person may not alter the face or remove any label so long as any of the original
contents remain.
(7) (a) An individual to whom or for whose use any controlled substance has been
prescribed, sold, or dispensed by a practitioner and the owner of any animal for which any
controlled substance has been prescribed, sold, or dispensed by a veterinarian may lawfully
possess it only in the container in which it was delivered to the individual by the person selling
or dispensing it.
(b) It is a defense to a prosecution under this subsection that the person being
prosecuted produces in court a valid prescription for the controlled substance or the original
container with the label attached.
Section 2. Section 
58-37-19
 is amended to read:
58-37-19.
Opiate prescription consultation -- Prescription for opioid antagonist
required.
(1) As used in this section:
[
(a) "Hospice" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
26-21-2
.
]
[
(b)
] 
(a)
 "Initial opiate prescription" means a prescription for an opiate to a patient
who:
(i) has never previously been issued a prescription for an opiate; or
(ii) was previously issued a prescription for an opiate, but the date on which the current
prescription is being issued is more than one year after the date on which an opiate was
previously prescribed or administered to the patient.
(b) "Opioid antagonist" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
26-55-102
.
(c) "Prescriber" means an individual authorized to prescribe a controlled substance
under this chapter.
(2) Except as provided in Subsection (3), a prescriber may not issue an initial opiate
prescription without discussing with the patient, or the patient's parent or guardian if the patient
is under 18 years of age and is not an emancipated minor:
(a) the risks of addiction and overdose associated with opiate drugs;
(b) the dangers of taking opiates with alcohol, benzodiazepines, and other central
nervous system depressants;
(c) the reasons why the prescription is necessary;
(d) alternative treatments that may be available; and
(e) other risks associated with the use of the drugs being prescribed.
(3) [
This section
] 
Subsection (2)
 does not apply to a prescription for:
(a) a patient who is currently in active treatment for cancer;
(b) a patient who is receiving hospice care from a licensed hospice 
as defined in
Section 
26-21-2
; or
(c) a medication that is being prescribed to a patient for the treatment of the patient's
substance abuse or opiate dependence.
(4) (a) Except when administered directly to an ultimate user by a licensed practitioner,
a prescriber shall prescribe an opioid antagonist to a patient if the patient receives an initial
opiate prescription for:
(i) 50 morphine milligram equivalents calculated in accordance with guidelines
developed by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; or
(ii) any opiate if the practitioner is also prescribing a benzodiazepine to the patient.
(b) This Subsection (4) does not require a patient to purchase or obtain an opioid
antagonist as a condition of receiving the patient's initial opiate prescription.