H. B. 2272


(By Delegates Compton, Hubbard, Caputo,
Leach, Stemple, Pulliam and Mahan)

[Introduced February 28, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Health and Human Resources then the Judiciary.]


A BILL to amend and reenact section three hundred eight, article three, chapter sixty-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to authorizing physicians to prescribe dosages of pain relieving drugs in excess of federal drug administration recommended dosages in cases where patients are suffering from intractable pain.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three hundred eight, article three, chapter sixty-a, of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. REGULATION OF MANUFACTURE, DISTRIBUTION AND DISPENSING OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES.

§60A-3-308. Prescriptions.

(a) Except when dispensed directly by a practitioner, other than a pharmacy, to an ultimate user, no controlled substance in Schedule II may be dispensed without the written prescription of a practitioner.
(b) In emergency situations, as defined by rule of the appropriate department, board or agency, Schedule II drugs may be dispensed upon oral prescription of a practitioner, reduced promptly to writing and filed by the pharmacy. Prescription shall be retained in conformity with the requirements of section 306. No prescription for a Schedule II substance may be refilled.
(c) Except when dispensed directly by a practitioner, other than a pharmacy, to an ultimate user, a controlled substance included in Schedule III or IV, which is a prescription drug as determined under appropriate state or federal statute, shall may not be dispensed without a written or oral prescription of a practitioner. The prescription shall may not be filled or refilled more than six months after the date thereof or be refilled more than five times, unless renewed by the practitioner.
(d) A controlled substance included in Schedule V shall may not be distributed or dispensed other than for a medicinal purpose: Provided, That buprenorphine shall be dispensed only by prescription pursuant to subsections (a), (b) and (c) of this section.
(e) In the case of a patient with intractable pain, a physician may prescribe a pain relieving drug, other than a Schedule I drug, in a dosage that is in excess of the generally recommended dosage for that drug if the physician certifies the medical necessity for each excess dosage in the patient's medical record. Any person who prescribes, dispenses or administers an excess dosage in accordance with this subsection is not in violation of the provisions of this chapter if the excess dosage is prescribed, dispensed or administered in good faith for accepted medicinal or therapeutic purposes.
Nothing in this subsection grants any person immunity from investigation, disciplinary action or prosecution if the prescription, dispensing or administration of a drug is otherwise in violation of the provisions of this chapter.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow physicians to prescribe dosages of pain relieving drugs in excess of their generally recommended dosages when a patient is suffering from intractable pain.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.