Amendment #13 to H4725

Special Commission to Study Drug Diversion

Mr. Day of Stoneham moves to amend the bill by adding the following new section:

“Section XX. (A) There shall be a special commission established to study means and methods that encourage prevention and detection of opioid diversion in healthcare facility settings.  The Commission shall study the impact and prevalence of drug diversion, and provide recommendations on: (1) health administration policies and procedures that promote secure storage and record keeping of controlled substances throughout the continuum of care; (2) clinician education on the safety risks opioid diversion poses to healthcare professionals and patients in the healthcare setting; (3) security policies and procedures which provide the appropriate security measures to prevent diversion and to tightly coordinate with nursing and pharmacy detection procedures; (4) human resource policies and procedures that provide a pathway for identified diverters out of patient care and into appropriate rehabilitation; and (5) the use of technology and system controls, including monitoring solutions that utilize advanced analytics to reliably identify suspect diverters.

(B) The commission shall consist of 18 members, as follows: the commissioner of public health and human services or a designee, who shall serve as the chair; the house chair of the joint committee on mental health, substance use and recovery or a designee; the senate chair of the joint committee on mental health, substance use and recovery or a designee; one person appointed by the speaker of the house; one person appointed by the senate president;  one  person appointed by the governor;  two representatives of local hospitals and/or health systems; one licensed pharmacy provider with expertise in pharmacy management; one licensed nurse provider with expertise in nurse administration;  one licensed primary care physician with expertise in coordination of care; one representative of the Massachusetts Nursing Association; one representative from the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association; one representative from the International Healthcare Facility Diversion Association; one representative of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health; one infection control professional; one patient safety professional; and one industry representative with expertise in diversion analytics and system controls.

(C) The Commission may establish advisory committees to assist its work. The commission shall file the report of its study, including recommendations for legislation, with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate no later than one year after the effective date of this act; provided, however, that the commission may, at the discretion of the chair, make a draft report available to the public for comment before filing the final version.”