Signed by Governor Tim Walz

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to adopt a conference report that establishes an opiate product registration fee and the Opiate Epidemic Response Advisory Council, among other provisions.

Highlights:

• Establishes the Opiate Epidemic Response Advisory Council in order to develop and implement a comprehensive and effective statewide effort to address the opioid addiction and overdose epidemic in Minnesota (Sec. 7). 

• Increases the licensure and registration fees in addition to the annual licensure and registration renewal fees to $5,000 for the following (Sec. 2 & 3):

• Drug wholesaler, legend drugs only;

• Drug wholesaler, legend and nonlegend drugs;

• Drug wholesaler, nonlegend drugs, veterinary legend drugs, or both;

• Drug wholesaler, medical gases;

• Drug wholesaler, also licensed as a pharmacy in Minnesota;

• Drug manufacturer, nonopiate legend drugs only;

• Drug manufacturer, nonopiate legend and nonlegend drugs;

• Drug manufacturer, nonlegend or veterinary legend drugs;

• Drug manufacturer, medical gases;

• Drug manufacturer, also licensed as a pharmacy in Minnesota; and

• Medical gas distributor.

• Increases the licensure and registration fee in addition to the annual licensure and registration renewal fee to $55,000 for drug manufacturers of opiate-containing controlled substances (Sec. 2 & 3).

• Specifies that the preceding two highlights will go into effect July 1, 2019, and will apply to any license issued on or after that date (Sec. 2 & 3).

• Requires $5,000 collected from certain fees specified above to be deposited in the opiate epidemic response account (Sec. 4).

• Requires each opiate manufacturer and each opiate wholesaler, by March 1 of each year, beginning in 2020, to report to the board every sale, delivery, or other distribution within or into this state of any opiate that is made to any practitioner, pharmacy, hospital, veterinary hospital, or other person permitted to possess controlled substances for administering or dispensing to patients that occurred during the previous calendar year (Sec. 5).

• Requires each owner of a pharmacy with at least one location within Minnesota, by March 1 of each year, beginning in 1, 2020, to report to the board any intracompany delivery or distribution into this state, of any opiate, to the extent that those deliveries and distributions are not reported to the board by a licensed wholesaler owned by, under contract to, or otherwise operating on behalf of the owner of the pharmacy (Sec. 5).

• Requires the board to annually assess an opiate product registration fee on any manufacturer of an opiate that annually sells, delivers, or distributes an opiate within or into Minnesota 2 million or more units (Sec. 5).

• Requires the Board of Pharmacy to conduct a study regarding opiate usage patterns to make a determination about whether the opiate product registration fee should continue beyond July 1, 2024 (Sec. 5).

• Specifies that licensure and registration fees in addition to the annual licensure and registration renewal fees for drug manufacturers of opiates will be reduced to $5,260, and the opiate registration fee will be repealed if the state receives $250 million as a result of a settlement agreement or an assurance of discontinuance entered into by the attorney general of the state, or a court order in litigation brought by the attorney general of the state on behalf of the state or a state agency, against one or more opioid manufacturers or opioid wholesale drug distributors related to alleged violations of consumer fraud laws in the marketing, sale, or distribution of opioids in this state, or other alleged illegal actions that contributed to the excessive use of opioids, or from fees collected from the preceding highlights that are deposited in the opiate epidemic response account, or from a combination of both (Sec. 8).

• Expands those authorized to administer opiate antagonists to include (Article 2, Sec. 4):

• Correctional employees of a state or local political subdivision;

• Volunteer firefighters; and

• Licensed school nurses or certified public health nurses employed by, or under contract with, a school board.

• Prohibits a prescription for an opiate or narcotic pain reliever listed in Schedules II through IV of section 152.02 from being initially dispensed more than 30 days after the prescription issuance date (Article 2, Sec. 6).

• Prohibits prescriptions for opiates of narcotic pain relievers listed in Schedules II through IV of section 152.02 when used for the treatment of acute pain, from exceeding a 7-day supply for an adult and from exceeding a 5-day supply for a minor under 18 years of age (Article 2, Sec. 8).

• Specifies that a professional clinical practitioner can issue a prescription regardless of the previous highlight if they believe the patient needs more than what is authorized (Article 2, Sec. 8).

• Requires the Board of Medical Practice, the Board of Nursing, the Board of Dentistry, the Board of Optometry, and the Board of Podiatric Medicine, beginning January 1, 2020, to require licensees authorized to prescribe controlled substances to obtain a minimum of 2 hours of continuing education credit on best practices in prescribing opioids and controlled substances, including nonpharmacological and implantable device alternatives for treatment of pain and ongoing pain management, as part of the continuing education requirements for licensure renewal (Article 2, Sec. 10).

Full Bill Text