HB 585

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to public records; creating s. 893.0551,
3	F.S.; exempting from public records requirements
4	information and records reported to the Department of
5	Health under the electronic system for monitoring the
6	dispensing of certain controlled substances; authorizing
7	certain persons and entities access to information;
8	providing restrictions on the use of such information and
9	criminal penalties for violations; authorizing agreements
10	with other states to exchange prescription drug monitoring
11	information; providing factors for considering such
12	agreements; requiring a report concerning any such
13	agreements; limiting the purposes for which information
14	may be shared under such agreements; providing for future
15	legislative review and repeal; providing a finding of
16	public necessity; providing a contingent effective date.
17
18	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
19
20	Section 1.  Section 893.0551, Florida Statutes, is created
21	to read:
22	893.0551  Electronic system for monitoring the dispensing
23	of certain controlled substances; public records exemption.--
24	(1)  Information collected by the department under s.
25	893.055 is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s.
26	24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. However, the department
27	may disclose such information:
28	(a)  To a patient to whom the prescription is written.
29	(b)  To a person with the express written consent of the
30	patient to whom the prescription is written or the patient's
31	legally authorized representative.
32	(c)  To a person charged with protecting the health or life
33	of the patient in a medical emergency.
34	(d)  By court order upon a showing of good cause.
35	(e)  To a practitioner or pharmacist who requests the
36	information and certifies that the requested information is for
37	the purpose of providing medical or pharmaceutical treatment to
38	a bona fide current patient.
39	(f)  To a law enforcement officer of this state, another
40	state, or the United States whose duty it is to enforce the laws
41	of this state, another state, or the United States relating to
42	controlled substances and who is engaged in a bona fide specific
43	investigation involving a designated person.
44	(g)  To the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in the Department
45	of Legal Affairs for the purpose of a bona fide specific
46	investigation under s. 409.920 involving a designated person.
47	(h)  To a designated representative of a state professional
48	licensing, certification, or regulatory agency charged with
49	oversight of those persons authorized to prescribe or dispense
50	controlled substances for the purpose of a bona fide specific
51	investigation involving a designated person.
52	(i)  To a person or agency authorized to receive the
53	information under s. 119.0712(1)(d), provided that any
54	information disclosed must have had all information that would
55	permit the identification of persons removed prior to
56	disclosure.
57	(2)  Recipients of information lawfully disclosed under
58	subsection (1) may retain the information for up to 24 months
59	before purging the information from their records. However, the
60	information may be retained longer than 24 months if the
61	information is pertinent to an ongoing prosecution or
62	disciplinary proceeding.
63	(3)  The department may retain information collected under
64	s. 893.055 for up to 24 months before purging the information
65	from its records.
66	(4)  A person authorized to receive information under
67	subsection (1) who:
68	(a)  Knowingly discloses such information in violation of
69	this section; or
70	(b)  Uses such information in a manner or for a purpose in
71	violation of this section
72
73	commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as
74	provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
75	(5)(a)  The State Surgeon General may enter into reciprocal
76	agreements for the sharing of prescription drug monitoring
77	information with any other state or states that have compatible
78	prescription drug monitoring programs. If the State Surgeon
79	General elects to evaluate the prescription drug monitoring
80	program of another state as authorized by this subsection,
81	priority shall be given to a state that is contiguous with the
82	borders of this state.
83	(b)  In determining compatibility, the State Surgeon
84	General shall consider:
85	1.  The essential purposes of the program and the success
86	of the program in fulfilling those purposes.
87	2.  The safeguards for privacy of patient records and the
88	success of the program in protecting patient privacy.
89	3.  The persons authorized to view the data collected by
90	the program.
91	4.  The schedules of the controlled substances monitored.
92	5.  The data required to be submitted on each prescription.
93	6.  Any implementation criteria deemed essential for a
94	thorough comparison.
95	7.  The costs and benefits to the state in sharing
96	particular information available in the state's database with
97	the program under consideration.
98	(c)  The State Surgeon General shall review any agreement
99	on an annual basis to determine its continued compatibility with
100	the prescription drug monitoring program in this state.
101	(d)  The State Surgeon General shall submit an annual
102	report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
103	Speaker of the House of Representatives that summarizes any
104	agreement entered into under this subsection and that analyzes
105	the effectiveness of that agreement in monitoring the dispensing
106	of controlled substances in this state.
107	(e)  Any agreement between the State Surgeon General and
108	another state shall prohibit the sharing of information about a
109	resident of this state or a practitioner, pharmacist, or other
110	prescriber for any purpose not otherwise authorized by this
111	section or s. 893.055.
112	(6)  This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset
113	Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed
114	on October 2, 2014, unless reviewed and saved from repeal
115	through reenactment by the Legislature.
116	Section 2.  The Legislature finds that it is a public
117	necessity that the information contained in the records provided
118	to the Department of Health, or any person or agency authorized
119	by the department, pursuant to s. 893.055, Florida Statutes, be
120	confidential and exempt from disclosure. Notwithstanding the
121	privacy issues surrounding the prescription and dispensing of
122	controlled substances listed in Schedule II, Schedule III, and
123	Schedule IV of s. 893.03, Florida Statutes, the use of an
124	electronic monitoring system, with oversight by the department,
125	will assist in the development of improved prescription and
126	dispensing practices and better protect the public and its
127	citizens. Further, the use of an electronic monitoring system
128	will facilitate investigations and prosecutions of violations of
129	state drug laws, thereby increasing compliance with those laws.
130	However, if such information is not made confidential and exempt
131	from disclosure, any person could inspect and copy a patient's
132	records and have knowledge of that patient's prescriptions for
133	controlled substances listed in Schedule II, Schedule III, or
134	Schedule IV. The availability of such information to the public
135	would result in the invasion of a patient's privacy. Thus, the
136	Legislature finds that information reported pursuant to s.
137	893.055, Florida Statutes, must be confidential and exempt from
138	disclosure under s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a),
139	Art. I of the State Constitution.
140	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009, if HB
141	583 or similar legislation establishing an electronic system for
142	monitoring the dispensing of controlled substances listed in
143	Schedule II, Schedule III, and Schedule IV is adopted in the
144	same legislative session or an extension thereof and becomes
145	law.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.