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REFERENCE TITLE: emergency contraception |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-second Legislature First Regular Session 2015
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HB 2552 |
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Introduced by Representatives Steele, Benally, Cardenas, Sherwood, Velasquez, Wheeler, Senators Bradley, Farley, Hobbs, Quezada: Representatives Andrade, Bolding, Clark, Espinoza, Friese, Gabaldón, Gonzales, Hale, Mendez, Meyer, Otondo, Rios, Saldate
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AN ACT
amending title 32, chapter 18, article 3, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 32-1979; Amending title 32, chapter 32, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 32-3219; amending section 36-132, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to emergency contraception.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 32, chapter 18, article 3, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 32-1979, to read:
32-1979. Duty to fill prescriptions; notification; accommodation; exceptions; definition
A. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a pharmacy that is licensed pursuant to this chapter must properly fill valid prescription orders presented to the pharmacy by or for a customer.
B. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a pharmacy that is licensed pursuant to this chapter shall require its employees to notify it in writing of all categories or types of prescription drugs and devices that the employee would decline to fill because of the employee's sincerely held religious beliefs. On receiving this notification, the pharmacy shall attempt to accommodate the employee if the accommodation can be made without causing undue hardship to the pharmacy or its customers. In determining whether a proposed accommodation would cause an undue hardship, the pharmacy may consider:
1. Whether the proposed accommodation would delay the filling of prescription orders and result in the pharmacy being unable to fill certain prescriptions in the equivalent time as the pharmacy is filling other prescriptions of in-stock drugs or devices at that time.
2. The pharmacy's ability to fill the customer's prescription at that pharmacy location.
3. The pharmacy's financial costs in implementing the accommodation.
4. The damage to the pharmacy's reputation or goodwill in the community due to its failure to provide timely prescription filling services.
C. If a customer asks for a prescription drug or device that is not in stock, the pharmacy shall offer the customer each of the following options and perform the chosen option without delay:
1. Obtain the drug or device under the pharmacy's standard procedures for expedited ordering of any drug or device that is not in stock.
2. Transfer the prescription order to another local pharmacy of the customer's choice under the pharmacy's standard procedures for transferring prescription orders for drugs or devices.
3. Return the unfilled prescription order to the customer and refer the customer to another local pharmacy. The pharmacy shall make a reasonable effort to refer the customer to a pharmacy that stocks the drug or device and that is near enough to the referring site to ensure that the customer has timely access to the drug or device.
D. This section does not prohibit a pharmacy from refusing to dispense a prescription drug or device if there is a valid medical concern that the drug or device will cause problems due to therapeutic duplications, contraindications, drug interactions, incorrect dosage or duration of drug treatment or abuse or misuse.
E. A pharmacy shall treat each customer with respect and dignity, make good faith efforts not to embarrass or demean the customer and attempt to ensure a seamless delivery of prescription services, regardless of whether the pharmacy has made an accommodation for an employee pursuant to subsection B of this section.
F. A pharmacy that violates this section commits an act of unprofessional conduct and is subject to disciplinary action pursuant to this chapter.
G. The board shall initiate an investigation of any allegation of a violation of this section within seven days after receiving a complaint.
H. For the purposes of this section, "employee" includes a current employee and an applicant for employment.
Sec. 2. Title 32, chapter 32, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 32-3219, to read:
32-3219. Rape victims; emergency contraception; referral; definitions
A. A health professional who provides care to a female patient of reproductive age who states that she is the victim of rape at a minimum shall:
1. Provide the patient with medical information about emergency contraception.
2. Verbally inform the patient that the health professional will provide or prescribe emergency contraception at the patient's request.
3. Provide or prescribe emergency contraception at the patient's request. If the health professional provides an emergency contraception drug, the health professional shall provide the patient with an initial dose and any follow-up doses that the patient can self-administer or prescribe the entire course of treatment.
B. A health professional may satisfy the requirements of this section by referring the patient to another provider for forensic medical care and emergency contraception.
C. A health professional whose religious tenets prohibit the use of contraceptive methods may satisfy the requirements of this section by immediately referring the patient to another health professional who is immediately available and who will comply with the requirements of this section.
D. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Care" means medical examinations, procedures and services provided to a patient within seventy-two hours after a rape.
2. "Emergency contraception" means a drug or device that prevents pregnancy after sexual intercourse.
3. "Health professional" means a person who is licensed to prescribe medication pursuant to chapter 13, 15, 17, 25 or 29 of this title.
4. "Nonconsensual" means:
(a) The patient was coerced by the immediate use or threatened use of force against the patient.
(b) The patient was incapable of consent by reason of mental disorder, mental defect, drugs, alcohol, sleep or any other similar impairment of cognition and the condition is known or should reasonably have been known to the perpetrator of the rape. For the purposes of this subdivision, "mental defect" means the patient is unable to comprehend the distinctly sexual nature of the conduct or is incapable of understanding or exercising the right to refuse to engage in the conduct with another.
5. "Rape" means nonconsensual sexual intercourse involving penetration of the vulva.
Sec. 3. Section 36-132, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
36-132. Department of health services; functions; contracts
A. The department shall,
in addition to other powers and duties vested in it by law, shall:
1. Protect the health of the people of the state.
2. Promote the development, maintenance, efficiency and effectiveness of local health departments or districts of sufficient population and area that they can be sustained with reasonable economy and efficient administration, provide technical consultation and assistance to local health departments or districts, provide financial assistance to local health departments or districts and services that meet minimum standards of personnel and performance and in accordance with a plan and budget submitted by the local health department or districts to the department for approval, and recommend the qualifications of all personnel.
3. Collect, preserve, tabulate and interpret all
information required by law in reference to births, deaths and all vital facts,
and obtain, collect and preserve information relating to the health of the
people of the state and the prevention of diseases as may be useful in the discharge
of functions of the department not in conflict with the
provisions of chapter 3 of this title, and sections 36‑693, 36‑694
and 39‑122.
4. Operate such sanitariums, hospitals or other facilities assigned to the department by law or by the governor.
5. Conduct a statewide program of health education relevant to the powers and duties of the department, prepare educational materials and disseminate information as to conditions affecting health, including basic information for the promotion of good health on the part of individuals and communities, and prepare and disseminate technical information concerning public health to the health professions, local health officials and hospitals. In cooperation with the department of education, the department of health services shall prepare and disseminate materials and give technical assistance for the purpose of education of children in hygiene, sanitation and personal and public health, and provide consultation and assistance in community organization to counties, communities and groups of people.
6. Administer or supervise a program of public health nursing, prescribe the minimum qualifications of all public health nurses engaged in official public health work, and encourage and aid in coordinating local public health nursing services.
7. Encourage and aid in coordinating local programs concerning control of preventable diseases in accordance with statewide plans that shall be formulated by the department.
8. Encourage and aid in coordinating local programs concerning maternal and child health, including midwifery, antepartum and postpartum care, infant and preschool health and the health of school children schoolchildren, including special fields such as the prevention of blindness and conservation of sight and hearing.
9. Encourage and aid in the coordination of local programs concerning nutrition of the people of the state.
10. Encourage, administer and provide dental health care services and aid in coordinating local programs concerning dental public health, in cooperation with the Arizona dental association. The department may bill and receive payment for costs associated with providing dental health care services and shall deposit the monies in the oral health fund established by section 36‑138.
11. Establish and maintain adequate serological, bacteriological, parasitological, entomological and chemical laboratories with qualified assistants and facilities necessary for routine examinations and analyses and for investigations and research in matters affecting public health.
12. Supervise, inspect and enforce the rules concerning the operation of public bathing places and public and semipublic swimming pools adopted pursuant to section 36‑136, subsection H, paragraph 10.
13. Take all actions necessary or appropriate to ensure that bottled water sold to the public and water used to process, store, handle, serve and transport food and drink are free from filth, disease‑causing substances and organisms and unwholesome, poisonous, deleterious or other foreign substances. All state agencies and local health agencies involved with water quality shall provide to the department any assistance requested by the director to ensure that this paragraph is effectuated.
14. Enforce the state food, caustic alkali and acid laws in accordance with chapter 2, article 2 of this title, chapter 8, article 1 of this title and chapter 9, article 4 of this title, and collaborate in the enforcement of the federal food, drug and cosmetic act of 1938 (52 Stat. 1040; 21 United States Code sections 1 through 905).
15. Recruit and train personnel for state, local and district health departments.
16. Conduct continuing evaluations of state, local and district public health programs, study and appraise state health problems and develop broad plans for use by the department and for recommendation to other agencies, professions and local health departments for the best solution of these problems.
17. License and regulate health care institutions according to chapter 4 of this title.
18. Issue or direct the issuance of licenses and permits required by law.
19. Participate in the state civil defense program and develop the necessary organization and facilities to meet wartime or other disasters.
20. Subject to the availability of monies, develop and administer programs in perinatal health care, including:
(a) Screening in early pregnancy for detecting high‑risk conditions.
(b) Comprehensive prenatal health care.
(c) Maternity, delivery and postpartum care.
(d) Perinatal consultation, including transportation of the pregnant woman to a perinatal care center when medically indicated.
(e) Perinatal education oriented toward professionals and consumers, focusing on early detection and adequate intervention to avert premature labor and delivery.
21. License and regulate the health and safety of group homes for persons with developmental disabilities. The department shall issue a license to an accredited facility for a period of the accreditation, except that no licensing period shall be longer than three years. The department is authorized to conduct an inspection of an accredited facility to ensure that the facility meets health and safety licensure standards. The results of the accreditation survey shall be public information. A copy of the final accreditation report shall be filed with the department of health services. For the purposes of this paragraph, "accredited" means accredited by a nationally recognized accreditation organization.
22. Subject to the availability of monies, including federal monies that are available for teenage pregnancy prevention programs, administer or supervise a program to reduce the risks of unintended pregnancy by improving awareness of emergency contraception. The program shall provide information on the department's website and social networking sites about the purpose, risks and availability of emergency contraception.
B. The department may accept from the state or federal government, or any agency of the state or federal government, and from private donors, trusts, foundations or eleemosynary corporations or organizations grants or donations for or in aid of the construction or maintenance of any program, project, research or facility authorized by this title, or in aid of the extension or enforcement of any program, project or facility authorized, regulated or prohibited by this title, and enter into contracts with the federal government, or an agency of the federal government, and with private donors, trusts, foundations or eleemosynary corporations or organizations, to carry out such purposes. All monies made available under this section are special project grants. The department may also expend these monies to further applicable scientific research within this state.
C. The department, in establishing fees authorized by this section, shall comply with title 41, chapter 6. The department shall not set a fee at more than the department's cost of providing the service for which the fee is charged. State agencies are exempt from all fees imposed pursuant to this section.
D. The department may enter into contracts with organizations that perform nonrenal organ transplant operations and organizations that primarily assist in the management of end stage renal disease and related problems to provide, as payors of last resort, prescription medications necessary to supplement treatment and transportation to and from treatment facilities. The contracts may provide for department payment of administrative costs it specifically authorizes.