The bill directs the Colorado department of public health and environment (CDPHE), in coordination with the department of revenue (DOR) and the department of regulatory agencies (DORA), to collect information and data related to the use of natural medicine and natural medicine products, including data on the following topics:
Law enforcement incidents involving the use of natural medicine and natural medicine products;
Adverse health events involving the use of natural medicine and natural medicine products;
Impacts on health-care facilities, hospitals, and health-care systems related to the use of natural medicine and natural medicine products;
Consumer protection claims related to natural medicine and natural medicine products; and
Behavioral health impacts related to the use of natural medicine and natural medicine products.
CDPHE and other relevant state departments shall also request and collect relevant data and information related to the health effects of the use of natural medicine from sources that may include all-payer claims data, hospital discharge data, peer-reviewed research studies, and other sources as determined by CDPHE.
The data and information collected by CDPHE must be de-identified and not include personal identifying information of an individual. CDPHE must provide the data and information collected to DOR for use in the DOR's annual report concerning the implementation and administration of Colorado's natural medicine program.
Subject to available appropriations, CDPHE shall also collect relevant data and information related to the use of natural medicine from facilitators and healing centers. CDPHE is required to create and maintain a database of the information collected. CDPHE is prohibited from sharing the information and data collected, except in certain instances, such as sharing the information with agencies and departments for their regulatory purposes, and only to the extent the information is necessary for those purposes.
The operation and maintenance of the database is scheduled to repeal after 5 years. CDPHE may accept gifts, grants, and donations related to the collection of the data and information, but only from private or public sources that do not have a financial interest in the outcomes of the data collection.
The bill establishes the pilot data collection program, which requires CDPHE to create and maintain a database (database) consisting of data and information collected by from facilitators and healing centers. Facilitators must provide data and information to CDPHE regarding health outcome data, demographic information, information related to the outcome of a participant's administration session, information concerning natural medicine services provided by the facilitator, and other relevant information as determined by DORA. Healing centers must provide data and information to CDPHE concerning demographic information of individuals who use regulated natural medicine services, outcome data related to an individual's participation in regulated natural medicine services, and any other information as determined by DOR. All data collected from facilitators and healing centers must be de-identified and not include the personal identifying information of individuals. The collection of data and information by CDPHE, DOR, and DORA and the maintenance of the database is subject to the acceptance of gifts, grants, or donations by CDPHE, and CDPHE is not required to collect the data and information or maintain the database as required by the bill if there is not sufficient funding. The bill requires CDPHE, DOR, and DORA to conduct a review to determine whether there is sufficient funding available for the collection of data and information and the maintenance of the database prior to the repeal of the statute on September 1, 2030, and submit that determination to the general assembly.
The bill clarifies certain statutory provisions related to the issuance of owner licenses and employee licenses for natural medicine businesses. In existing statute, an applicant for an owner license or an employee license must submit to a fingerprint-based criminal history background check. The bill removes the fingerprinting requirement, but requires an applicant for a license to complete a name-based judicial record check.
The bill requires the state licensing authority to adopt rules related to product labels for regulated natural medicine and regulated natural medicine products and permits the state licensing authority to adopt rules regarding the types of regulated natural medicine products that can be manufactured.
The bill permits the governor to grant pardons to a class of defendants who were convicted of the possession of natural medicine.
(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)
(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)