Honorable Four Price, Chair, House Committee on Public Health
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
SB316 by Hinojosa (Relating to powers and duties of certain prescribers and dispensers of controlled substances and the regulatory agencies that issue a license, certification, or registration to the prescriber or dispenser; following the recommendations of the Sunset Advisory Commission.), Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted
The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend requirements related to the provision and limitations on disclosure of certain information for prescribed or dispensed controlled substances under the Health and Safety Code. The bill would limit the purposes for which prescription information for controlled substances could be disclosed to individuals by the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, and would expand the allowable disclosure of this information as authorized under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The bill also would reduce the time period for pharmacists to submit required information on filled prescriptions to the Board to the next day after a prescription is filled, down from the seventh day. The bill would make it an offense to make an unauthorized disclosure of information regarding controlled substances dispensed by a veterinarian. Under existing code, unauthorized disclosure of information related to controlled substances and failure to provide prescription information as required under the relevant codes are state jail felonies.
A state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for a term from 180 days to 2 years or Class A misdemeanor punishment. In addition to confinement, most felony offense are also subject to an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.
Reducing the allowable time period for reporting information before a violation is committed is expected to result in increased demands on the correctional resources of counties or of the State due to a potential increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement within state correctional institutions. In fiscal year 2016, fewer than 10 individuals were arrested, fewer than 10 were placed under felony community supervision, and fewer than 10 were admitted into state correctional intuitions for prescription related violations of the Health and Safety Code punishable by a felony under existing statute. However, this analysis assumes implementing the provisions of the bill would not result in a significant impact on the demand for state correctional resources.