SB 22-027

Senate Bill 22-027, also known as the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program bill, requires doctors and other health-care providers who prescribe medications to register with a monitoring program. This program helps track prescriptions for opioids and benzodiazepines, which are often misused. Before writing a prescription for these drugs, healthcare practitioners must check this database to ensure patients aren't getting multiple prescriptions from different doctors. The bill also asks a group to review how the program balances its role in health care with enforcing rules. Since it has been signed into law, all prescribers and providers now need to follow these new requirements.

Official Summary

The act clarifies that: Each prescriber of prescription drugs must register and maintain a user account with the prescription drug monitoring program (program); and Each licensed health-care practitioner must query the program prior to filling a prescription for every opioid or benzodiazepine. The act requires the group tasked with developing a strategic plan to reduce prescription drug misuse to evaluate and make recommendations to the executive director of the department of regulatory agencies regarding balancing the use of the program as a health-care tool with enforcement of the requirements of the program. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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