HOUSE BILL No. 5643

 

May 16, 2012, Introduced by Reps. Lori, Haines, Tyler, Graves, Wayne Schmidt and Hobbs and referred to the Committee on Health Policy.

 

     A bill to amend 1978 PA 368, entitled

 

"Public health code,"

 

by amending section 17755 (MCL 333.17755) and by adding section

 

17755a.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 17755. (1) When If a pharmacist receives a prescription

 

for a brand name drug product, the pharmacist may, or when if a

 

purchaser requests a lower cost generically equivalent drug

 

product, the pharmacist shall dispense a lower cost but not higher

 

cost generically equivalent drug product if available in the

 

pharmacy, except as provided in subsection (3) and section 17755a.

 

If a drug is dispensed which that is not the prescribed brand, the

 

pharmacist shall notify the purchaser shall be notified and

 

indicate on the prescription label shall indicate both the name of

 

the brand prescribed and the name of the brand dispensed and


 

designate each respectively. If the dispensed drug does not have a

 

brand name, the pharmacist shall indicate on the prescription label

 

shall indicate the generic name of the drug dispensed, except as

 

otherwise provided in section 17756.

 

     (2) If a pharmacist dispenses a generically equivalent drug

 

product, the pharmacist shall pass on the savings in cost to the

 

purchaser or to the third party payment source if the prescription

 

purchase is covered by a third party pay contract. The savings in

 

cost is the difference between the wholesale cost to the pharmacist

 

of the 2 drug products.

 

     (3) The A pharmacist shall not dispense a generically

 

equivalent drug product under subsection (1) if any of the

 

following applies:

 

     (a) The prescriber, in the case of a prescription in writing

 

signed by the prescriber, writes in his or her own handwriting

 

"dispense as written" or "d.a.w." on the prescription.

 

     (b) The prescriber, having preprinted on his or her

 

prescription blanks the statement "another brand of a generically

 

equivalent product, identical in dosage, form, and content of

 

active ingredients, may be dispensed unless initialed d.a.w.",

 

writes in his or her own handwriting, the initials "d.a.w." in a

 

space, box, or square adjacent to the statement.

 

     (c) The prescriber, in the case of a prescription other than

 

one in writing signed by the prescriber, expressly indicates the

 

prescription is to be dispensed as communicated.

 

     (4) A pharmacist may not dispense a drug product with a total

 

charge that exceeds the total charge of the drug product originally


 

prescribed, unless agreed to by the purchaser.

 

     Sec. 17755a. (1) The Michigan board of pharmacy shall create a

 

list of the opioid analgesic drugs for which it has received

 

evidence from the drug manufacturer or distributor that the drug

 

meets all of the following:

 

     (a) It incorporates a tamper-resistance technology.

 

     (b) It has been approved by the United States food and drug

 

administration pursuant to an application that included at least 1

 

human tampering or abuse potential study or a laboratory study

 

comparing the tamper-resistance or abuse-resistance properties of

 

the drug to 1 or more opioid analgesic drugs that have been

 

approved by the United States food and drug administration and that

 

serve as a positive control.

 

     (2) The Michigan board of pharmacy may not exclude an opioid

 

analgesic drug from the list described in subsection (1) because

 

the drug does not bear a labeling claim with respect to reduction

 

of tampering, abuse, or abuse potential at the time the drug is

 

included in the list. The list shall also include a determination

 

by the board as to which opioid analgesic drugs incorporating

 

tamper-resistance technologies included on the list provide

 

substantially similar tamper-resistance properties, based solely on

 

studies submitted to the United States food and drug administration

 

by the drug manufacturer and described in subsection (1)(b)

 

     (3) A pharmacist shall not interchange or substitute an opioid

 

analgesic drug, brand or generic, otherwise eligible for

 

interchange or substitution under section 17755 for an opioid

 

analgesic drug incorporating a tamper-resistance technology without


 

doing 1 of the following:

 

     (a) Verifying that the Michigan board of pharmacy has

 

determined under subsection (2) that the opioid analgesic drug

 

provides tamper-resistance properties substantially similar to the

 

prescribed opioid analgesic drug incorporating a tamper-resistance

 

technology.

 

     (b) Obtaining written, signed consent from the prescriber for

 

the interchange or substitution.

 

     (4) As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Interchange or substitution of an opioid analgesic drug"

 

means the substitution of any opioid analgesic drug, brand or

 

generic, for a prescribed opioid analgesic drug incorporating a

 

tamper-resistance technology, whether or not the substituted drug

 

is rated as pharmaceutically and therapeutically equivalent by the

 

United States food and drug administration or Michigan board of

 

pharmacy or whether the opioid analgesic drug with tamper-

 

resistance technology bears a labeling claim with respect to

 

reduction of tampering, abuse, or abuse potential.

 

     (b) "Opioid analgesic drug" means a drug in the opioid drug

 

class prescribed to treat moderate to severe pain or other

 

conditions, including opioid dependence, whether in immediate

 

release or extended release form and whether or not combined with

 

other drug substances to form a single tablet or other dosage form.

 

     (c) "Opioid analgesic drug incorporating a tamper-resistance

 

technology" means an opioid analgesic drug listed as such by the

 

Michigan board of pharmacy under subsection (1).