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S.C.R. 2 Enrolled

             1     

REDUCING PRESCRIPTION DRUG MISUSE

             2     
RESOLUTION

             3     
2010 GENERAL SESSION

             4     
STATE OF UTAH

             5     
Chief Sponsor: Patricia W. Jones

             6     
House Sponsor: Trisha S. Beck

             7     
             8      LONG TITLE
             9      General Description:
             10          This concurrent resolution of the Legislature and the Governor urges consumers,
             11      doctors, pharmacists, health insurers, employers, government agencies, parents, and
             12      Utahns generally to take specific steps to reduce prescription drug misuse and
             13      addiction.
             14      Highlighted Provisions:
             15          This resolution:
             16          .    urges various groups to take specific steps to:
             17              .    improve the effectiveness of education and risk assessment before a
             18      prescription is issued;
             19              .    improve the effectiveness of disposal and monitoring of use after a prescription
             20      is issued; and
             21              .    increase the availability and use of treatment programs.
             22      Special Clauses:
             23          None
             24     
             25      Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
             26          WHEREAS, the retention and storage of an unused portion of a drug prescription
             27      increases the likelihood that the drug will fall into the hands of someone other than the
             28      intended patient through theft or other means and be misused;
             29          WHEREAS, misuse of prescription drugs can lead to dependency, addiction, and


             30      death;
             31          WHEREAS, addiction to prescription drugs can be just as devastating to individuals,
             32      families, and communities as addiction to illicit drugs;
             33          WHEREAS, Utah deaths from prescription misuse are on the rise, increasing from 50
             34      deaths in 1999 to over 300 deaths in 2007;
             35          WHEREAS, more effective education and assessment of risk before a prescription is
             36      issued and more effective disposal and monitoring of use after the prescription is issued could
             37      do much to help individuals avoid both the unintentional and intentional misuse of
             38      prescription drugs;
             39          WHEREAS, greater availability and use of treatment programs could reduce deaths
             40      due to prescription drug addiction; and
             41          WHEREAS, doctors, pharmacists, health insurers, employers, government agencies,
             42      family members, and others are each in a position to improve education, risk assessment,
             43      disposal, monitoring, or treatment:
             44          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the State of Utah, the
             45      Governor concurring therein, urge individuals, as consumers of prescription drugs, to assume
             46      the primary responsibility for the proper use, safe storage, and disposal of any drug prescribed
             47      to them, to encourage their doctors and pharmacists to provide adequate instruction on how to
             48      fulfill those responsibilities, and to ensure that their doctors are aware of all other medications
             49      and substances with which a prescribed drug might interact.
             50          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge individuals
             51      to clean out their medicine cabinets routinely, and at least annually, and that they properly
             52      dispose of the unused portions of any drug prescriptions, in accordance with guidelines
             53      published by the federal Office of National Drug Control Policy at
             54      http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/publications/pdf/prescrip_disposal.pdf, by taking the
             55      drugs to a community drop-off site or hazardous waste collection event listed at
             56      http://www.medicationdisposal.utah.gov/disposal_locations_events.htm#hhhw, flushing the
             57      drugs down the sink or toilet only when specifically instructed to do so on the prescription


             58      drug label, or by removing personal information from the drug container, mixing the unused
             59      drugs with an undesirable substance like cat litter, and disposing of the mixture in a sealed
             60      container, along with the original container, in the trash.
             61          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge doctors, as
             62      prescribers of prescription drugs, to take whatever time is necessary when a drug is prescribed
             63      to ensure that the patient understands how to safely use the drug, including the potential for
             64      dangerous interactions with other medications and substances, how to safely store and dispose
             65      of any unused portion of the prescription, including how to protect family members and others
             66      from any unintentional or intentional misuse of the drug, how to recognize and report to the
             67      prescriber any signs of dependency or addiction, and the legal prohibitions on sharing or
             68      selling any portion of the prescription.
             69          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge doctors to
             70      assess each patient's risk for misuse, dependency, or addiction before prescribing a drug, to
             71      use the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing's controlled substance database
             72      whenever appropriate to assess patient risk, and where risk is significant, to use medication
             73      management agreements when appropriate to educate patients, promote compliance with
             74      prescribing orders, and reduce the risk of misuse and addiction.
             75          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge
             76      pharmacists, as dispensers of prescription drugs, to encourage patients at the time of
             77      dispensing to receive verbal instructions from the pharmacist on how to safely use the
             78      prescribed drug, including the potential for dangerous interactions with other medications and
             79      substances, how to safely store and dispose of any unused portion of the prescription,
             80      including how to protect family members and others from any unintentional or intentional
             81      misuse of the drug, how to recognize any signs of dependency or addiction and the importance
             82      of reporting those signs to the prescriber, and the legal prohibitions on sharing or selling any
             83      portion of the prescription.
             84          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge pharmacists
             85      to use as frequently as possible the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing's


             86      controlled substance database to reduce the risk of misuse and addiction, and to ensure that
             87      prescribers are aware of any concerns pharmacists may have about particular patients.
             88          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge health
             89      insurers, as managers of prescription drug plans, to structure contracts with doctors and
             90      pharmacists in ways that encourage providers to educate patients on the safe use, storage, and
             91      disposal of prescription drugs, and to evaluate prescription drug purchasing patterns of
             92      insureds and the prescribing and dispensing patterns of providers and, as appropriate, alert
             93      insureds, doctors, pharmacists, or the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing of
             94      any concerns about misuse or addiction.
             95          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge employers,
             96      as payers for health insurance, to encourage health insurers to offer health plans that include
             97      coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of prescription drug addiction, to offer their
             98      employees health insurance or employee assistance programs that help pay for the diagnosis
             99      and treatment of prescription drug addiction, and to encourage employees suspected of
             100      prescription drug addiction to seek professional help.
             101          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge the Division
             102      of Occupational and Professional Licensing, as a regulator of prescription drug prescribers, to
             103      enhance its capacity to analyze the controlled substance database and alert doctors and
             104      pharmacists of patients that may be addicted to or misusing prescription drugs, and to
             105      continue developing the controlled substance database so that eventually the database is
             106      updated immediately when a drug is dispensed and doctors and pharmacists have 24-hour
             107      access to the information.
             108          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge the Division
             109      of Occupational and Professional Licensing, as division resources permit, to survey doctors,
             110      pharmacists, and patients to determine whether patients are receiving appropriate instructions
             111      on the safe use, storage, and disposal of prescription drugs, potential drug interactions, and the
             112      signs and reporting of dependency and addiction, and whether patients are being cautioned
             113      about sharing and selling prescription drugs.


             114          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge other
             115      federal, state, and local government agencies, as entities created to protect the public, to
             116      continue working on their own and through multi-agency projects like the Utah Prescription
             117      Pain Medication Management and Education Program and the Utah Pharmaceutical Drug
             118      Crime Project to reduce prescription drug misuse, addiction, and death, to continue developing
             119      campaigns like "Use Only as Directed" and "Clean out the Cabinet" to educate the public
             120      about the dangers of prescription drug misuse and to promote the disposal of partially-used
             121      prescriptions, to continue developing drop-off sites and other secure and environmentally
             122      friendly methods for disposing of unused prescription drugs, and to continue promoting the
             123      availability and use of programs that treat prescription drug addiction.
             124          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge parents, as
             125      children's most important source of education and protection, to minimize the availability of
             126      prescription drugs in their homes by disposing of partially used prescriptions and properly
             127      securing currently used prescriptions, and to provide their children with age-appropriate
             128      instruction on the proper use, storage, and disposal of prescription drugs, including legal
             129      prohibitions on the sharing and selling of prescription drugs.
             130          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge each citizen
             131      of this state, as responsible individuals concerned for the welfare of others, to encourage one
             132      another to use prescription drugs responsibly and to seek treatment for addiction when
             133      necessary, and to lend support to school and community education efforts to prevent misuse
             134      and addiction.
             135          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of the resolution be sent to the Utah
             136      Medical Association, the Utah Pharmacists Association, the Utah Food Industry Association,
             137      the Utah Retail Merchants Association, the Utah Health Insurance Association, the Employers
             138      Council, the ERISA Industry Committee, the National Federation of Independent Business, the
             139      Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing, the Utah Department of Human
             140      Services, the Utah Department of Health, the Utah Association of Local Health Departments,
             141      and the United States Department of Health and Human Services.


             142     


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