General Law Committee
JOINT FAVORABLE REPORT
Bill No.: SB-895
Title: AN ACT CONCERNING CHANGES TO VARIOUS PHARMACY STATUTES.
Vote Date: 3/23/2021
Vote Action: Joint Favorable Substitute
PH Date: 2/25/2021
File No.: 361
Disclaimer: The following JOINT FAVORABLE Report is prepared for the benefit of the
members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and
explanation and does not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber
thereof for any purpose.
SPONSORS OF BILL:
General Law Committee
REASONS FOR BILL:
The Pharmacy Statues need changing in view of the last year and the Covid-19 pandemic.
This bill modernizes various pharmacy statutes in the state of Connecticut. The bill does not
change pharmacist scope of practice but eliminates outdated administrative burdens and
provides more access to information and updated reporting requirements that keep pace with
technology. The bill also has the potential to drive down healthcare costs as it provides clarity
to authority pharmacists, as well as the integration of pharmacists into collaborative chronic
care teams improves patient health outcomes. The bill allows for automated prescription
dispensing machines in nursing homes, providing more timely access for the nursing home
teams.
JFS LANGUAGE:
Multiple technical changes and consolidating definition sections including syringe programs
with disposal locked containers, excluding veterinarians from section 5 along with methadone
clinic conflicts.
RESPONSE FROM ADMINISTRATION/AGENCY:
Michelle Seagull, Commissioner, Department of Consumer Protection testified on the
bill. Section 1 and 2 allows for automated prescription dispensing machines in nursing
homes. The language in section 3 permits registered syringe programs. Sections 4 and 5
modifies collaborative drug therapy statues to enhance patient care and reduce
administrative burdens. The intent of section 6 is to permit methadone and other controlled
substances medication to be uploaded to the Connecticut Prescription Monitoring and
Reporting System. Section 6 as currently drafted needs to be amended because it conflicts
with the Section 21a-254(j)(13) of the Connecticut General Statues.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF SUPPORT:
Connecticut State Medical Society provided testimony on the bill. As physicians caring for
patients in Connecticut we need access to the most robust patient information. This bill
modifies Connecticut laws on mandated PDMP reporters and requires OTP to report
methadone and buprenorphine dispensing. Omitting dispensing data can lead to potentially
dangerous adverse events for patients. We acknowledge the privacy concerns however the
disclosure of dispensing data by OTP's would be continent on patient consent so any
negative impact on patient confidentially would be small.
Dr. Mehul Dalal, Community Services Administrator, City of New Haven submitted
testimony in support of the bill. Dispensing unite is a critical tool in strengthening our HIV and
overdose prevention efforts in New Haven. Overdose deaths have been rising in New Haven
and expanding access to naloxone is essential. We need to explore every tool available to
help our community avoid preventable HIV transmission. Harm reduction dispensing units are
an innovated extension of SSP service delivery and they offer the opportunity for service
delivery after traditional work hours.
Jody Fenelon, RPh VP Compliance-Partners Pharmacy Connecticut submitted testimony
in support of the bill. Section 2 (a and b) expedites the opportunity to implement use of the
automated prescription dispensing machines in long term care facilities with a significant
benefit in the care of the residents. The benefits will be safety, accuracy, medication
availability, infection control, cost control and diversion prevention.
Phillip Hritcko, UConn School of Pharmacy supports the bill. The bill does not change
pharmacist scope of practice but eliminates outdated administrative burdens. The 30-day
reporting requirement is obsolete and impractical but this bill will maintain pace with
technology.
Dr. Fredrick Altice, Professor, Yale School of Medicine submitted testimony is support of
the bill. Section 3 (c) enables NHSSP to respond to the critical needs to increase access to
harm reduction services. We will be purchasing dispensing machines to distribute these
harm reduction service kits. We want to make them available in three diverse neighborhoods
in the New Haven area that is most profoundly impacted by opioids. Only NHSSP
participants will have access by a unique swipe card or code to retrieve items. The public will
not be able to access the machines unless they are enrolled in the program.
Sean Jeffery, Director, Clinical Pharmacy Services, Hartford HealthCare, testified in
support of the bill. Collaborative drug therapy (CDT) managements as outlined in section 5 of
the bill are formal partnerships between physicians and a pharmacist. We urge the statue be
updated to establish CDT protocols based on conditions, diseases and practice settings. The
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Veterans Health Administration has been using this model for many decades. "Deprescribing"
and "polypharmacy" in section 4 of the bill need to have broader definitions.
Nathan Tinker, CEO, Connecticut Pharmacists Association provided testimony in support
of the bill. This bill has the potential to drive down healthcare costs because it provides
clarity and definition to authority pharmacists. The critical role that medication management
plays suggests that the integration of pharmacists into chronic-care delivery teams improves
health outcomes.
Michelle Byram, Katherine Czarnowski, Vincent Do, Karen Gleason, Jenna Lee, Darren
Luon, Steph Luon, Amanda Orabone, Kent Owusu, Maria Renauer and Amanda Williams all
licensed pharmacist in the state of Connecticut submitted testimony in support of the bill.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF OPPOSITION:
Connecticut Veterinary Medical Association submitted testimony against the bill.
Veterinarians are considered dispensers and come under the same requirements for opioids.
We respectfully request that the committee consider adding language to exempt
veterinarians.
Reported by: Pamela Bianca March 25, 2021
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Statutes affected:
Raised Bill: 20-571, 20-631
GL Joint Favorable Substitute: 20-571, 20-631
File No. 361: 20-571, 20-631
Public Act No. 21-192: 20-571, 20-631