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S.C.R. 2

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


             59      along with the original container, in the trash.
             60          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge doctors, as
             61      prescribers of prescription drugs, to take whatever time is necessary when a drug is prescribed
             62      to ensure that the patient understands how to safely use the drug, including the potential for
             63      dangerous interactions with other medications and substances, how to safely store and dispose
             64      of any unused portion of the prescription, including how to protect family members and others
             65      from any unintentional or intentional misuse of the drug, how to recognize and report to the
             66      prescriber any signs of dependency or addiction, and the legal prohibitions on sharing or selling
             67      any portion of the prescription.
             68          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge doctors to
             69      assess each patient's risk for misuse, dependency, or addiction before prescribing a drug, to use
             70      the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing's controlled substance database
             71      whenever appropriate to assess patient risk, and where risk is significant, to use medication
             72      management agreements when appropriate to educate patients, promote compliance with
             73      prescribing orders, and reduce the risk of misuse and addiction.
             74          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge pharmacists,
             75      as dispensers of prescription drugs, to encourage patients at the time of dispensing to receive
             76      verbal instructions from the pharmacist on how to safely use the prescribed drug, including the
             77      potential for dangerous interactions with other medications and substances, how to safely store
             78      and dispose of any unused portion of the prescription, including how to protect family
             79      members and others from any unintentional or intentional misuse of the drug, how to recognize
             80      any signs of dependency or addiction and the importance of reporting those signs to the
             81      prescriber, and the legal prohibitions on sharing or selling any portion of the prescription.
             82          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge pharmacists
             83      to use as frequently as possible the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing's
             84      controlled substance database to reduce the risk of misuse and addiction, and to ensure that
             85      prescribers are aware of any concerns pharmacists may have about particular patients.
             86          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge health
             87      insurers, as managers of prescription drug plans, to structure contracts with doctors and
             88      pharmacists in ways that encourage providers to educate patients on the safe use, storage, and
             89      disposal of prescription drugs, and to evaluate prescription drug purchasing patterns of insureds


             90      and the prescribing and dispensing patterns of providers and, as appropriate, alert insured,
             91      doctors, pharmacists, or the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing of any
             92      concerns about misuse or addiction.
             93          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge employers,
             94      as payers for health insurance, to encourage health insurers to offer health plans that include
             95      coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of prescription drug addiction, to offer their
             96      employees health insurance or employee assistance programs that help pay for the diagnosis
             97      and treatment of prescription drug addiction, and to encourage employees suspected of
             98      prescription drug addiction to seek professional help.
             99          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge the Division
             100      of Occupational and Professional Licensing, as a regulator of prescription drug prescribers, to
             101      enhance its capacity to analyze the controlled substance database and alert doctors and
             102      pharmacists of patients that may be addicted to or misusing prescription drugs, and to continue
             103      developing the controlled substance database so that eventually the database is updated
             104      immediately when a drug is dispensed and doctors and pharmacists have 24-hour access to the
             105      information.
             106          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge the Division
             107      of Occupational and Professional Licensing, as division resources permit, to survey doctors,
             108      pharmacists, and patients to determine whether doctors and pharmacists are adequately
             109      instructing patients on the safe use, storage, and disposal of prescription drugs, potential drug
             110      interactions, the signs and reporting of dependency and addiction, and the legal prohibitions on
             111      sharing and selling prescription drugs, whether doctors are assessing each patient's risk for
             112      misuse, dependency, or addiction before prescribing a drug, whether doctors are using
             113      medication management agreements when appropriate, whether doctors and pharmacists are
             114      using the controlled substance database whenever appropriate to assess patient risk, and
             115      whether pharmacists are informing prescribers of any concerns they may have about particular
             116      patients.
             117          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge other
             118      federal, state, and local government agencies, as entities created to protect the public, to
             119      continue working on their own and through multi-agency projects like the Utah Prescription
             120      Pain Medication Management and Education Program and the Utah Pharmaceutical Drug


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




Legislative Review Note
    as of 1-22-10 2:25 PM


Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


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