1 | The Health Care Regulation Committee recommends the following: |
2 |
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3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
5 | A bill to be entitled |
6 | An act relating to public records; creating s. 893.056, |
7 | F.S.; exempting from public records requirements |
8 | information and records reported to the Department of |
9 | Health or the department's contract vendor under the |
10 | electronic monitoring system for prescription of |
11 | controlled substances listed in Schedules II-IV; |
12 | authorizing certain persons and entities access to |
13 | personal identifying information of a patient; providing |
14 | guidelines for the use of such information and penalties |
15 | for violations; providing for future legislative review |
16 | and repeal; providing a finding of public necessity; |
17 | providing a contingent effective date. |
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19 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
20 |
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21 | Section 1. Section 893.056, Florida Statutes, is created |
22 | to read: |
23 | 893.056 Public records exemption for the electronic |
24 | monitoring system for prescription of controlled substances |
25 | listed in Schedules II-IV.-- |
26 | (1) Personal identifying information of a patient, a |
27 | practitioner as defined in s. 893.02, or a pharmacist as defined |
28 | in s. 465.003 that is contained in records held by the |
29 | department or the department's contract vendor under s. 893.055, |
30 | the electronic monitoring system for prescription of controlled |
31 | substances, is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. |
32 | 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. |
33 | (2) The department or the department's contract vendor |
34 | entering into a contract pursuant to s. 893.055(2) shall |
35 | disclose such confidential and exempt information to: |
36 | (a) The executive director of a regulatory board or a |
37 | board investigator as designated by each board of the regulatory |
38 | boards of the health care practitioners subject to s. 893.055 |
39 | pursuant to the provisions of s. 456.073. |
40 | (b) The Agency for Health Care Administration when it has |
41 | initiated a review of specific identifiers of Medicaid fraud and |
42 | abuse. |
43 | (c) A criminal justice agency as defined in s. 119.011 |
44 | that enforces the laws of this state or the United States |
45 | relating to controlled substances and that has secured a |
46 | subpoena for such confidential and exempt information pursuant |
47 | to an active investigation of an individual involving a specific |
48 | violation of law. |
49 | (d) A practitioner as defined in s. 893.02, or an employee |
50 | of the practitioner who is acting on behalf of and at the |
51 | direction of the practitioner, who requests such information and |
52 | certifies that the information is necessary to provide medical |
53 | treatment to a current patient in accordance with s. 893.05, |
54 | subject to that patient's written consent. |
55 | (e) A pharmacist as defined in s. 465.003, or a pharmacy |
56 | intern or pharmacy technician who is acting on behalf of and at |
57 | the direction of the pharmacist, who requests such information |
58 | and certifies that the requested information will be used to |
59 | dispense controlled substances to a current patient in |
60 | accordance with s. 893.04. |
61 | (f) The patient who is identified in the record upon a |
62 | written request for the purpose of verifying that information. |
63 | (3) Any agency that obtains such confidential and exempt |
64 | information pursuant to this section must maintain the |
65 | confidential and exempt status of that information; however, the |
66 | Agency for Health Care Administration or a criminal justice |
67 | agency with lawful access to such information may disclose |
68 | confidential and exempt information received from the department |
69 | to a criminal justice agency as part of an active investigation |
70 | of a specific violation of law. |
71 | (4) Any person who willfully and knowingly violates this |
72 | section commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as |
73 | provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. |
74 | (5) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset |
75 | Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed |
76 | on October 2, 2009, unless reviewed and saved from repeal |
77 | through reenactment by the Legislature. |
78 | Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public |
79 | necessity that personal identifying information of a patient, a |
80 | practitioner as defined in s. 893.02, Florida Statutes, or a |
81 | pharmacist as defined in s. 465.003, Florida Statutes, contained |
82 | in records that are reported to the Department of Health under |
83 | s. 893.055, Florida Statutes, the electronic monitoring system |
84 | for prescription of controlled substances, be made confidential |
85 | and exempt. Information concerning the prescriptions that a |
86 | patient has been prescribed is a private, personal matter |
87 | between the patient, the practitioner, and the pharmacist. |
88 | Nevertheless, reporting of prescriptions on a timely and |
89 | accurate basis by practitioners and pharmacists will ensure the |
90 | ability of the state to review and provide oversight of |
91 | prescribing and dispensing practices. Further, the reporting of |
92 | this information will facilitate investigations and prosecutions |
93 | of violations of state drug laws by patients, practitioners, or |
94 | pharmacists, thereby increasing compliance with those laws. If, |
95 | in the process, however, the information that would identify a |
96 | patient is not made confidential and exempt, any person could |
97 | inspect and copy the record and be aware of the prescriptions |
98 | that a patient has been prescribed. The availability of such |
99 | information to the public would result in the invasion of the |
100 | patient's privacy. If the identity of the patient could be |
101 | correlated with his or her prescriptions, it would be possible |
102 | for the public to become aware of the diseases or other medical |
103 | concerns that a patient is being treated for by his or her |
104 | physician. This knowledge could be used to embarrass or to |
105 | humiliate a patient or to discriminate against him or her. |
106 | Requiring the reporting of prescribing information, while |
107 | protecting a patient's personal identifying information, will |
108 | facilitate efforts to maintain compliance with the state's drug |
109 | laws and will facilitate the sharing of information between |
110 | health care practitioners and pharmacists, while maintaining and |
111 | ensuring patient privacy. Additionally, exempting personal |
112 | identifying information of doctors and pharmacists will ensure |
113 | that an individual will not be able to "doctor-shop," that is to |
114 | determine which doctors prescribe the highest amount of a |
115 | particular type of drug and to seek those doctors out in order |
116 | to increase the likelihood of obtaining a particular prescribed |
117 | substance. Further, protecting personal identifying information |
118 | of pharmacists ensures that an individual will not be able to |
119 | identify which pharmacists dispense the largest amount of a |
120 | particular substance and target that pharmacy for robbery or |
121 | burglary. Thus, the Legislature finds that personal identifying |
122 | information of a patient, a practitioner as defined in s. |
123 | 893.02, Florida Statutes, or a pharmacist as defined in s. |
124 | 465.003, Florida Statutes, contained in records reported under |
125 | s. 893.055, Florida Statutes, must be confidential and exempt |
126 | from disclosure. |
127 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006, if |
128 | House Bill 913, or similar legislation establishing an |
129 | electronic system to monitor the prescribing of controlled |
130 | substances, is adopted in the same legislative session or an |
131 | extension thereof and becomes law. |