[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 1, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S1166]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 3382. Mr. MARKEY (for himself and Mr. Blumenthal) submitted an 
amendment intended to be proposed by him 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. __. CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN 
                   PRACTITIONERS PRESCRIBING CONTROLLED 
                   SUBSTANCES.

       Section 303 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 
     823) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (f), in the matter preceding paragraph 
     (1), by striking ``The Attorney General shall register'' and 
     inserting ``Subject to subsection (j), the Attorney General 
     shall register''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(j)(1) In this subsection, the term `covered 
     practitioner' means a practitioner that is not a hospital, 
     pharmacy, or veterinarian.
       ``(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), as a 
     condition of granting or renewing the registration of a 
     covered practitioner under this part to dispense, or conduct 
     research with, controlled substances in schedule II, III, IV, 
     or V, the Attorney General shall require, before each such 
     grant or renewal of registration, that the covered 
     practitioner complete training (through classroom situations, 
     seminars at professional society meetings, electronic 
     communications, or otherwise) that the Secretary of Health 
     and Human Services determines meets the requirements under 
     paragraph (3).
       ``(B) Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to the granting or 
     renewal of a registration described in subparagraph (A) if 
     the registration is solely for dispensing non-narcotic 
     controlled substances or substances on schedule IV or V.
       ``(3) The training provided for purposes of paragraph (2) 
     shall, at a minimum, expose covered practitioners to--
       ``(A) best practices for pain management, including 
     alternatives to prescribing controlled substances and other 
     alternative therapies to decrease the use of opioids;
       ``(B) responsible prescribing of pain medications, as 
     described in Federal prescriber guidelines for nonmalignant 
     pain;
       ``(C) methods for diagnosing, treating, and managing a 
     substance use disorder, including the use of medications 
     approved by the Food and Drug Administration and evidence-
     based nonpharmacological therapies;
       ``(D) linking patients to evidence-based treatment for 
     substance use disorders; and
       ``(E) tools to manage adherence and diversion of controlled 
     substances, including prescription drug monitoring programs, 
     drug screening, informed consent, overdose education, and the 
     use of opioid overdose antagonists.
       ``(4) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
     Administration shall establish or support the establishment 
     of not less than 1 training module that meets the 
     requirements under paragraph (3) that is provided--
       ``(A) to any covered practitioner registered or applying 
     for a registration under this part to dispense, or conduct 
     research with, controlled substances in schedule II, III, IV, 
     or V;
       ``(B) online; and
       ``(C) free of charge.
       ``(5) The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
     establish, maintain, and periodically update a publically 
     available database providing information relating to training 
     modules that meet the requirements under paragraph (3).
       ``(6) Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of 
     this subsection, the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
     shall evaluate and make publically available a report 
     describing how exposure to the training required under this 
     subsection has changed prescribing patterns of controlled 
     substances.''.
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