[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 1, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1142-S1143]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3357. Mrs. SHAHEEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by her to the bill S. 524, to authorize the Attorney General to award
grants to address the national epidemics of prescription opioid abuse
and heroin use; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. __. CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE MONITORING PROGRAM.
(a) Amendment to National All Schedule Prescription
Reporting Act of 2005.--Paragraph (1) of section 2 of the
National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting Act
of 2005 (Public Law 109-60) is amended to read as follows:
``(1) foster the establishment of State-administered
controlled substance monitoring systems in order to ensure
that--
``(A) health care providers have access to the accurate,
timely prescription history information that they may use as
a tool for the early identification of patients at risk for
addiction in order to initiate appropriate medical
interventions and avert the tragic personal, family, and
community consequences of untreated addiction; and
``(B) appropriate law enforcement, regulatory, and State
professional licensing authorities have access to
prescription history information for the purposes of
investigating drug diversion and prescribing and dispensing
practices of errant prescribers or pharmacists; and''.
(b) Amendments to Public Health Service Act.--Section 399O
of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-3) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(1)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'';
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; or''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) to maintain and operate an existing State-controlled
substance monitoring program.'';
(2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
``(b) Minimum Requirements.--The Secretary shall maintain
and, as appropriate, supplement or revise (after publishing
proposed additions and revisions in the Federal Register and
receiving public comments thereon) minimum requirements for
criteria to be used by States for purposes of clauses (ii),
(v), (vi), and (vii) of subsection (c)(1)(A).'';
(3) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (1)(B)--
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking
``(a)(1)(B)'' and inserting ``(a)(1)(B) or (a)(1)(C)'';
(ii) in clause (i), by striking ``program to be improved''
and inserting ``program to be improved or maintained'';
(iii) by redesignating clauses (iii) and (iv) as clauses
(iv) and (v), respectively;
(iv) by inserting after clause (ii), the following:
``(iii) a plan to apply the latest advances in health
information technology in order to incorporate prescription
drug monitoring program data directly into the workflow of
prescribers and dispensers to ensure timely access to
patients' controlled prescription drug history;'';
(v) in clause (iv) (as so redesignated), by inserting
before the semicolon the following: ``and at least one health
information technology system such as electronic health
records, health information exchanges, and e-prescribing
systems''; and
(vi) in clause (v) (as so redesignated), by striking
``public health'' and inserting ``public health or public
safety'';
(B) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking ``If a State that submits'' and inserting
the following:
``(A) In general.--If a State that submits'';
(ii) by inserting before the period at the end ``and
include timelines for full implementation of such
interoperability. The State shall also describe the manner in
which it will achieve interoperability between its monitoring
program and health information technology systems, as
allowable under State law, and include timelines for the
implementation of such interoperability''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Monitoring of efforts.--The Secretary shall monitor
State efforts to achieve interoperability, as described in
subparagraph (A).''; and
[[Page S1143]]
(C) in paragraph (5)--
(i) by striking ``implement or improve'' and inserting
``establish, improve, or maintain''; and
(ii) by adding at the end the following: ``The Secretary
shall redistribute any funds that are so returned among the
remaining grantees under this section in accordance with the
formula described in subsection (a)(2)(B).'';
(4) in subsection (d)--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``In implementing or improving'' and all
that follows through ``(a)(1)(B)'' and inserting ``In
establishing, improving, or maintaining a controlled
substance monitoring program under this section, a State
shall comply, or with respect to a State that applies for a
grant under subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection (a)(1)'';
and
(ii) by striking ``public health'' and inserting ``public
health or public safety''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) The State shall report on interoperability with the
controlled substance monitoring program of Federal agencies,
where appropriate, interoperability with health information
technology systems such as electronic health records, health
information exchanges, and e-prescribing, where appropriate,
and whether or not the State provides automatic, real-time or
daily information about a patient when a practitioner (or the
designee of a practitioner, where permitted) requests
information about such patient.'';
(5) in subsections (e), (f)(1), and (g), by striking
``implementing or improving'' each place it appears and
inserting ``establishing, improving, or maintaining'';
(6) in subsection (f)--
(A) in paragraph (1)(B) by striking ``misuse of a schedule
II, III, or IV substance'' and inserting ``misuse of a
controlled substance included in schedule II, III, or IV of
section 202(c) of the Controlled Substances Act''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(3) Evaluation and reporting.--Subject to subsection (g),
a State receiving a grant under subsection (a) shall provide
the Secretary with aggregate data and other information
determined by the Secretary to be necessary to enable the
Secretary--
``(A) to evaluate the success of the State's program in
achieving its purposes; or
``(B) to prepare and submit the report to Congress required
by subsection (k)(2).
``(4) Research by other entities.--A department, program,
or administration receiving nonidentifiable information under
paragraph (1)(D) may make such information available to other
entities for research purposes.'';
(7) by striking subsection (k);
(8) by redesignating subsections (h) through (j) as
subsections (i) through (k), respectively;
(9) in subsections (c)(1)(A)(iv) and (d)(4), by striking
``subsection (h)'' each place it appears and inserting
``subsection (i)'';
(10) by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
``(h) Education and Access to the Monitoring System.--A
State receiving a grant under subsection (a) shall take steps
to--
``(1) facilitate prescriber and dispenser use of the
State's controlled substance monitoring system; and
``(2) educate prescribers and dispenser on the benefits of
the system both to them and society.'';
(11) in subsection (k)(2)(A), as redesignated--
(A) in clause (ii), by striking ``or affected'' and
inserting ``, established or strengthened initiatives to
ensure linkages to substance use disorder services, or
affected''; and
(B) in clause (iii), by striking ``including an
assessment'' and inserting ``between controlled substance
monitoring programs and health information technology
systems, and including an assessment'';
(12) in subsection (l)(1), by striking ``establishment,
implementation, or improvement'' and inserting
``establishment, improvement, or maintenance'';
(13) in subsection (m)(8), by striking ``and the District
of Columbia'' and inserting ``, the District of Columbia, and
any commonwealth or territory of the United States''; and
(14) by amending subsection (n), to read as follows:
``(n) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this
section, there are authorized to be appropriated $7,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020.''.
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