HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	2631
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

Relating to the electronic prescription accountability system.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that opioid addiction is a growing problem in Hawaii. According to data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdose deaths in Hawaii increased by eighty-three percent from 2006 to 2014, a growth rate more than double the national average of thirty-seven percent. Nearly half of those deaths are a result of prescription opioids.

Furthermore, the Centers for Disease Control also noted that sales of prescription opioids in the United States nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2014, but there has not been an overall change in the amount of pain Americans report. The legislature further finds that the connection between increased prescriptions for opiates, and similar increases in overdose deaths and substance abuse problems from those prescriptions must be addressed.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to make use of data available within the Electronic Prescription Accountability System to inform prescribers on their opioid prescription rates in relation to their peers by grouping similarly situated practitioners and assigning them a percentile rank within the group according to total opiate prescriptions prescribed for the past year. Practitioners will be notified of their percentile ranking solely for the purpose of increasing awareness of their prescription habits; percentile ranking information produced under this Act will be inadmissible in all civil or criminal proceedings, and cannot be used as the sole purpose for investigation by a licensure board.

SECTION 2. Section 329-103, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§329-103[]] Designated state agency. The designated state agency shall:

(1) Oversee and administer the collection of information under the system;

(2) Control access to the information in the system; [and]

(3) Produce exception reports as defined in section 329-1[.];

(4) Annually determine, through the electronic prescription accountability system established in section 329-101, the mean and median quantity and volume of prescriptions for opiates contained in Schedule II controlled substances as defined in section 329-16 and Schedule III controlled substances as defined in 329-18 issued by practitioners registered under section 329-101; provided, however, that mean and median prescription quantities and volumes shall be determined within categories of practitioners of a similar specialty or practice type as determined by the department;

(5) Work in conjunction with the respective boards of licensure to annually determine each practitioner’s Schedule II and Schedule III opiate prescribing quantity and volume, and the practitioner’s standing with regard to the mean and median quantity and volume for the practitioner’s category of specialty or practice type; provided, however, that the practitioner’s standing shall be expressed as a percentile ranking for the practitioner within the practitioner’s category. Each practitioner whose prescribing exceeds the mean or median within the practitioner’s category shall be sent notice of the practitioner’s percentile ranking in a manner determined by the department. Any practitioner may request the practitioner’s own percentile ranking within the practitioner’s own category of practice. The ranking determined for each practitioner shall be confidential, shall be distributed by the department or by the relevant board of licensure only to the practitioner to which the information pertains, and shall not be admissible as evidence in a civil or criminal proceeding or be the sole basis for investigation by a licensure board; and

(6) Coordinate with the respective boards of licensure to make resources available to prescribers regarding ways to change prescribing practices and incorporate alternative pain management options into a prescriber’s practice."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on January 1, 2019.

INTRODUCED BY:

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Report Title:

Electronic Prescription Accountability System; Opiates

Description:

Enhances the electronic prescription accountability system to inform prescribers of the percentile ranking of their opiate prescription practices as compared to their peers.

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.