Bill Text: NJ S3240 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: "Charlie's Law"; requires pharmacy practice sites and hospice programs to furnish patients with information and products to safely dispose of unused prescription drugs and medications.**
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-3)
Status: (Vetoed) 2019-05-13 - Conditional Veto, Received in the Senate [S3240 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-S3240-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator ROBERT W. SINGER
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
"Charlie's Law"; requires that pharmacists and prescribers furnish patients with information and products concerning safe disposal of drugs and needles.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning prescription medications and supplementing Title 24 and Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. A health care professional authorized to issue prescriptions shall, when issuing any prescription for a drug or medication which is a controlled dangerous substance, and when issuing a prescription for any other prescription drug or medication as may be designated by the Commissioner of Health by regulation:
(1) provide the patient with oral instructions and written informational materials advising that when unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications are not properly, safely, and promptly disposed of:
(a) there is a risk that the drug or medication can be stolen, diverted, abused, misused, or accidentally ingested, which can pose a risk to the health and safety of the patient and other members of the patient's household;
(b) children are particularly at risk of accidentally ingesting unused, unwanted, and expired medications that have not been properly, safely, and promptly disposed of;
(c) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash or flushed down the drain, the drugs and medications can leak into the ecosystem, which can have a potentially adverse or harmful effect on the environment; and
(d) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash without the drug or medication having been rendered deactivated, inaccessible, or otherwise unpalatable, the drug or medication may be stolen by individuals seeking to divert, abuse, or misuse the drug or medication;
(2) offer to make available for purchase, or furnish at no cost to the patient, a product that can be used to permanently sequester or deactivate unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications for the purpose of safely disposing of the drugs and medications; and
(3) provide the patient with oral and written instructions on how to properly, safely, and promptly dispose of unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications, which may include, but shall not be limited to, providing instructions concerning the use of a product furnished to the patient pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, and advising the patient of the availability of secure prescription medication drop-off receptacles and prescription medication take-back programs.
The requirements of this subsection shall apply to each prescription issued by the health care professional, regardless of whether the prescription is being issued to a new or existing patient, regardless of whether the prescription is for a new drug or medication or renews or refills a current prescription, and regardless of the health care setting in which the prescription is issued.
b. At such time as any change is made to a patient's course of treatment that results in a change in the drugs or medications prescribed for the patient, or in the patient discontinuing the use of a prescription drug or medication, the health care professional providing care or treatment to the patient shall:
(1) provide the patient with oral instructions and written informational materials advising that when unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications are not properly, safely, and promptly disposed of:
(a) there is a risk that the drug or medication can be stolen, diverted, abused, misused, or accidentally ingested, which can pose a risk to the health and safety of the patient and other members of the patient's household;
(b) children are particularly at risk of accidentally ingesting unused, unwanted, and expired medications that have not been properly, safely, and promptly disposed of;
(c) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash or flushed down the drain, the drugs and medications can leak into the ecosystem, which can have a potentially adverse or harmful effect on the environment; and
(d) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash without the drug or medication having been rendered deactivated, inaccessible, or otherwise unpalatable, the drug or medication may be stolen by individuals seeking to divert, abuse, or misuse the drug or medication;
(2) offer to make available for purchase, or furnish at no cost to the patient, a product that can be used to permanently sequester or deactivate unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications for the purpose of safely disposing of the drugs and medications; and
(3) provide the patient with oral and written instructions on how to properly, safely, and promptly dispose of unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications, which may include, but shall not be limited to, providing instructions concerning the use of a product furnished to the patient pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, and advising the patient of the availability of secure prescription medication drop-off receptacles and prescription medication take back programs.
The requirements of this subsection shall apply to any change to a patient's course of treatment that results in a change in the drugs or medications prescribed for the patient, or in the patient discontinuing the use of a prescription drug or medication, regardless of whether the patient is a new or existing patient, and regardless of the health care setting in which the care or treatment is provided.
c. Any time a health care professional authorized to issue prescriptions issues a prescription for a hypodermic syringe or needle or for any drug or other medication which is to be administered using a hypodermic syringe or needle, the health care professional shall provide the patient with oral instructions and written informational materials concerning the safe disposal of used hypodermic syringes and needles so as to prevent against the potential transmission of bloodborne pathogens that can occur when used hypodermic syringes and needles are reused or when they cause accidental injury.
2. a. A pharmacy practice site or health care professional that dispenses prescription drugs, other than a long-term care pharmacy, shall, when dispensing to an individual located in this State a prescription drug or medication which is a controlled dangerous substance, and when dispensing any other prescription drug or medication as may be designated by the Commissioner of Health by regulation:
(1) provide the patient with oral instructions and written informational materials advising that when unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications are not properly, safely, and promptly disposed of:
(a) there is a risk that the drug or medication can be stolen, diverted, abused, misused, or accidentally ingested, which can pose a risk to the health and safety of the patient and other members of the patient's household;
(b) children are particularly at risk of accidentally ingesting unused, unwanted, and expired medications that have not been properly, safely, and promptly disposed of;
(c) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash or flushed down the drain, the drugs and medications can leak into the ecosystem, which can have a potentially adverse or harmful effect on the environment; and
(d) when drugs or medications are disposed of in the household trash without the drug or medication having been rendered deactivated, inaccessible, or otherwise unpalatable, the drug or medication may be stolen by individuals seeking to divert, abuse, or misuse the drug or medication;
(2) offer to make available for purchase, or furnish at no cost to the patient, a product that can be used to permanently sequester or deactivate unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications for the purpose of safely disposing of the drugs and medications; and
(3) provide the patient with oral and written instructions on how to properly, safely, and promptly dispose of unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications, which may include, but shall not be limited to, providing instructions concerning the use of a product furnished to the patient pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, and advising the patient of the availability of secure prescription medication drop-off receptacles and prescription medication take back programs.
b. The requirements of subsection a. of this section shall apply regardless of whether the prescription is an initial prescription or a renewal or refill of an existing prescription, and regardless of whether the patient is a new or returning customer at the pharmacy practice site or is a new or existing patient of the health care professional.
c. Any time a pharmacy practice site or health care professional that dispenses prescription drugs, other than a long-term care pharmacy, sells or dispenses a hypodermic syringe or needle, regardless of whether the hypodermic syringe or needle is sold or dispensed pursuant to a prescription, the pharmacy practice site or health care professional shall provide the patient with oral instructions and written informational materials concerning the safe disposal of used hypodermic syringes and needles so as to prevent against the potential transmission of bloodborne pathogens that can occur when used hypodermic syringes and needles are reused or when they result in accidental injury.
3. This act shall take effect 30 days after the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires that patients be provided with certain information concerning safe drug disposal and the opportunity to receive a product that can be used for the safe disposal of unused, unwanted, and expired drugs and medications under certain circumstances.
Specifically, patients are to be provided with the information and offer of a disposal product:
· When a health care professional issues any prescription for a drug or medication which is a controlled dangerous substance, and a prescription for any other prescription drug or medication as may be designated by the Commissioner of Health by regulation to a patient, regardless of whether the prescription is being issued to a new or existing patient, regardless of whether the prescription is for a new drug or medication or continues a current prescription, and regardless of the health care setting in which the prescription is issued;
· When a change is made to a patient's course of treatment that results in a change in the drugs or medications prescribed for the patient, or in the patient discontinuing the use of a prescription drug or medication, regardless of whether the patient is a new or existing patient, and regardless of the health care setting in which the care or treatment is provided;
· When a pharmacy practice site or health care professional that dispenses prescription drugs, other than a long-term care pharmacy, dispenses a prescription drug or medication which is a controlled dangerous substance, or any other prescription drug or medication as may be designated by the Commissioner of Health by regulation, regardless of whether the prescription is an initial prescription or a renewal or refill of an existing prescription, and regardless of whether the patient is a new or returning customer at the pharmacy practice site or is a new or existing patient of the health care professional; and
The informational materials are to include oral instructions and written information advising the patient of the risks of theft, diversion, abuse, misuse, and accidental ingestion when unused, unwanted, and expired drugs and medications are not properly, promptly, and safely disposed of, and that improperly disposing of drugs and medications presents a risk of harm to both individuals and the environment.
The patient is additionally to be offered, either for purchase or at no cost, a product that can be used to permanently sequester or deactivate unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications for the purpose of safely disposing of the drugs and medications. The patient is also to be provided with oral and written instructions on how to properly, safely, and promptly dispose of unused, unwanted, or expired drugs and medications, which may include, but will not be limited to, providing instructions concerning the use of any disposal product furnished to the patient and advising the patient of the availability of secure prescription medication drop-off receptacles and prescription medication take back programs.
Additionally, health care practitioners issuing a prescription for a hypodermic syringe or needle or for a medication to be administered using a hypodermic syringe or needle, and pharmacists and other health care practitioners selling or dispensing a hypodermic syringe or needle, regardless of whether the patient has a prescription, are to provide oral instructions and written informational materials to the patient concerning the safe disposal of used hypodermic syringes and needles so as to prevent the potential spread of bloodborne pathogens that can occur when used syringes and needles are reused or when they cause an injury.
This bill is named "Charlie's Law" after Charlie Van Tassel, a young man who struggled with addiction for many years before finally succumbing in 2013, at the age of 33. Charlie was an athlete and family prankster who loved music and dancing, had a terrific sense of humor, and was a beloved brother and son. It is the sponsor's intent to help reduce the risk that young people like Charlie will develop a substance use disorder, as well as to reduce the potential harms caused by the improper disposal of used hypodermic syringes and needles.
