AB 635, as introduced, Ammiano. Drug overdose treatment: liability.
Existing law authorizes a physician and surgeon to prescribe, dispense, or administer prescription drugs, including prescription-controlled substances, to an addict under his or her treatment, as specified. Existing law prohibits, except in the regular practice of his or her profession, any person from knowingly prescribing, administering, dispensing, or furnishing a controlled substance to or for any person who is not under his or her treatment for a pathology or condition other than an addiction to a controlled substance, except as specified.
Existing law authorizes, until January 1, 2016, and only in specified counties, a licensed health care provider, who is already permitted pursuant to existing law to prescribe an opioid antagonist, as defined, and who is acting with reasonable care, to prescribe and subsequently dispense or distribute an opioid antagonist in conjunction with an opioid overdose prevention and treatment training program, as defined, without being subject to civil liability or criminal prosecution. Existing law requires a local health jurisdiction that operates or registers an opioid overdose prevention and treatment training program to collect prescribed data and report it to the Senate and Assembly Committees on Judiciary by January 1, 2015.
Existing law authorizes, until January 1, 2016, and only in specified counties, a person who is not licensed to administer an opioid antagonist to do so in an emergency without fee if the person has received specified training information and believes in good faith that the other person is experiencing a drug overdose. Existing law prohibits that person, as a result of his or her acts or omissions, from being liable for any violation of any professional licensing statute, or subject to any criminal prosecution arising from or related to the unauthorized practice of medicine or the possession of an opioid antagonist.
This bill would revise and recast these provisions to instead authorize a licensed health care provider who is permitted by law to prescribe an opioid antagonist and is acting with reasonable care to prescribe and subsequently dispense or distribute an opioid antagonist for the treatment of an opioid overdose to a person at risk of an opioid-related overdose or a family member, friend, or other person in a position to assist a person at risk of an opioid-related overdose. The bill would authorize these licensed health care providers to issue standing orders for the distribution of an opioid antagonist to a person at risk of an opioid-related overdose or to a family member, friend, or other person in a position to assist the person at risk. The bill would authorize these licensed health care providers to issue standing orders for the administration of an opioid antagonist by a family member, friend, or other person in a position to assist a person experiencing or suspected of experiencing an opioid overdose. The bill would provide that a person who acts with reasonable care and issues a prescription for, or an order for the administration of, an opioid antagonist to a person experiencing or suspected of experiencing an opioid overdose is not subject to professional review, liable in a civil action, or subject to criminal prosecution for issuing the prescription or order. The bill would also delete the repeal date and reporting requirements and expand the applicability of these provisions statewide.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 1714.22 of the Civil Code is amended
2to read:
(a) For purposes of thisbegin delete section:end delete
P3 1begin delete(1)end deletebegin delete end deletebegin delete“Opioidend deletebegin insert section, “opioid end insertantagonist” means naloxone
2hydrochloride that is approved by the federal Food and Drug
3Administration for the treatment ofbegin delete a drugend deletebegin insert
an opioidend insert overdose.
4(2) “Opioid overdose prevention and treatment training
5program” or “program” means any program operated by a local
6health jurisdiction or that is registered by a local health jurisdiction
7to train individuals to prevent, recognize, and respond to an opiate
8overdose, and that provides, at a minimum, training in all of the
9following:
10(A) The causes of an opiate overdose.
11(B) Mouth to mouth resuscitation.
12(C) How to contact appropriate emergency medical services.
13(D) How to administer an opioid antagonist.
end delete
14(b) A licensed health care provider who isbegin delete permittedend deletebegin insert authorizedend insert
15 by law to prescribe an opioid antagonist may, if acting with
16reasonable care, prescribe and subsequently dispense or distribute
17an opioid antagonistbegin delete in conjunction with an opioid overdose
18prevention and
treatment training program, without being subject
19to civil liability or criminal prosecution. This immunity shall apply
20to the licensed health care provider even when the opioid antagonist
21is administered by and to someone other than the person to whom
22it is prescribedend delete
23or a family member, friend, or other person in a position to assist
24a person at risk of an opioid-related overdoseend insert.
25(c) (1) A licensed health care provider who is authorized by
26law to prescribe an opioid antagonist may issue standing orders
27for the distribution of an opioid antagonist to a person at risk of
28an opioid-related overdose or to a family member, friend, or other
29person in a position to assist a person at
risk of an opioid-related
30overdose.
31(2) A licensed health care provider who is authorized by law to
32prescribe an opioid antagonist may issue standing orders for the
33administration of an opioid antagonist to a person at risk of an
34opioid-related overdose by a family member, friend, or other
35person in a position to assist a person experiencing or reasonably
36suspected of experiencing an opioid overdose.
37(d) A licensed health care provider who acts with reasonable
38care shall not be subject to professional review, be found liable
39in a civil action, or be subject to criminal prosecution for issuing
40a prescription or order pursuant to subdivision (b) or (c).
P4 1(c) A person who is not otherwise licensed to administer an
2opioid antagonist may administer an opioid antagonist in an
3emergency without fee if the person has received the training
4information specified in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) and
5believes in good faith that the other person is experiencing a drug
6overdose. The person shall not, as a result of his or her acts or
7omissions, be liable for any violation of any professional licensing
8statute, or subject to any criminal prosecution arising from or
9related to the unauthorized practice of medicine or the possession
10of an opioid antagonist.
11(d) Each local
health jurisdiction that operates or registers an
12opioid overdose prevention and treatment training program shall,
13by January 1, 2015, collect, and report to the Senate and Assembly
14Committees on Judiciary, all of the following data on programs
15within the jurisdiction:
16(1) Number of training programs operating in the local health
17jurisdiction.
18(2) Number of individuals who have received a prescription for,
19and training to administer, an opioid antagonist.
20(3) Number of opioid antagonist doses prescribed.
21(4) Number of opioid antagonist doses administered.
22(5) Number of individuals who received opioid antagonist
23injections who were properly revived.
24(6) Number of individuals who received opioid antagonist
25injections who were not revived.
26(7) Number of adverse events associated with an opioid
27antagonist dose that was distributed as part of an opioid overdose
28prevention and treatment training program, including a description
29of the adverse events.
30(e) This section shall apply only to the Counties of Alameda,
31Fresno, Humboldt, Los Angeles, Mendocino, San Francisco, and
32Santa Cruz.
33(f) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2016,
34and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
35is enacted before January 1, 2016, deletes or extends that date.
36(e) Notwithstanding any other law, a person who possesses or
37distributes an opioid antagonist pursuant to a prescription or
38standing order shall not be subject to professional review, be found
39liable in a civil action, or be subject to criminal prosecution for
40this possession or distribution. Notwithstanding any other law, a
P5 1person who acts with reasonable care and administers an opioid
2antagonist to a person who is experiencing or is suspected of
3experiencing an overdose shall not be subject to professional
4review, be liable in a civil action, or be subject to criminal
5prosecution for this administration.
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