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Senate Bill 1879 |
Senate Author: Williams et al. |
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Effective: See below |
House Sponsor: Hamilton |
Senate Bill 1879 amends the Texas Controlled Substances Act in the Health and Safety Code to expand certain controlled substance monitoring protocols to include Schedule III, IV, and V prescription drugs. The bill requires a person who administers or dispenses certain controlled substances to record the prescribing practitioner's Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) registration number in certain emergency situations and requires the registration number to be included on certain prescriptions for a controlled substance. The bill authorizes the DPS director to charge a late fee relating to a renewal application to manufacture, distribute, prescribe, possess, analyze, or dispense a controlled substance, and requires a dispensing pharmacist to send information about the prescription filled to the director within a certain amount of time. Advanced practice nurses and physician assistants are added to the list of persons authorized to inquire about a patient's prescription history under certain circumstances. Senate Bill 1879 establishes an administrative penalty and notification and disposition procedures for violations relating to the manufacture, distribution, and dispensation of controlled substances, chemical precursors, and chemical laboratory apparatus.
The bill creates the pain treatment review committee to study the statutes that relate to the administration of prescription medication, controlled substances, and the needs of patients for effective pain control and management. The bill also creates an advisory committee to advise DPS on implementation of the act. The bill directs DPS, the Texas Medical Board, the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, the State Board of Dental Examiners, and the Board of Nurse Examiners to submit a report detailing the number and type of actions relating to the prosecution of violations of the controlled substances act.
Provisions of the bill relating to information to be included on a prescription for a controlled substance take effect September 1, 2008, except that provisions relating to the use of a practitioner's DPS registration number take effect only after the department establishes a means for pharmacies to electronically access and verify the accuracy of the registration numbers. Provisions of the bill relating to information required to be sent to the director of DPS by dispensing pharmacists also take effect September 1, 2008. All other provisions of the bill take effect on September 1, 2007.