| |
|
|
| |
Yesterday, the Senate took the final action on SB 573, the Physician Health Program (PHP) bill, before sending it to the Governor for his signature. This bill was the compilation of the efforts between all the key stakeholder groups over the past year and a half. Additionally this effort is a priority of the WVSMA President Dr Joseph Selby. The WVSMA will request a public bill event signing with the Governor.
This is enabling legislation that will allow the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine to contract with a Physician Health Program to provide monitoring services for physicians with substance abuse/addiction and major mental illnesses. This bill is the result of over a year and a half of research and collaboration between the WVSMA, WV Society of Osteopathic Medicine, Board of Medicine, Board of Osteopathic Medicine, WV Hospital Association, WV Mutual Insurance Agency, and WV PAGE. The bill allows the Boards to take a "therapeutic" instead of "punitive" approach toward physicians with addictions and mental illnesses and helps to steer them into treatment voluntarily.
The bill also modifies the current statute regarding non-renewal of medical licenses. Currently if a physician allows their license to lapse by simply not paying the renewal fee, the Board of Medicine 'suspends' their license. Though it is a non-disciplinary suspension it still is regarded as a suspension that is on the physician's record. The bill changes this to "expiration" and modifies the process to reinstate the license to active status. |
|
|
Top
|
| |
|
|
| |
The Governor's e-prescribing bill, SB 69, is currently in good shape but that wasn't the case just a day ago. This is the bill that clarifies that a prescription can be oral, written or "electronic" and allows intermediaries between the prescribing physician and the pharmacist. It paves the way for physicians to employ the use of more e-prescribing technology in West Virginia. Early in the week the House Health Committee amended the bill to add in a definition of the "practice of pharmacy." Delegate Border, who is a pharmacist, promoted the seemingly benign amendment as needed because there currently is no definition in statute. The following was the definition:
" 'Practice of Pharmacy' means the interpretation, evaluation, and implementation of medical orders; the dispensing of prescription drug orders; participation in drug and device selection; drug administration; drug regimen review; the practice of telepharmacy within and across state lines; drug or drug-related research; the provision of patient counseling; the provision of those acts or services necessary to provide pharmacist care in all areas of patient care, including primary care and collaborative pharmacy practice; the responsibility for compounding and labeling of drugs and devices (except labeling by a manufacturer, repackager, or distributor of non-prescription drugs and commercially packaged legend drugs and devices); proper and safe storage of drugs and devices; and maintenance of required records."
WVSMA lobbyist and attorneys quickly discovered the definition would essentially "explode" the pharmacist's scope of practice. After a few days of working this issue yesterday, on the House floor, Delegate Perdue, Chair of the House Health Committee (and also a pharmacist) amended this definition out of the bill. The bill is now on third reading in the House today. |
|
|
Top
|
| |
|
|
| |
A number of the priority bills of the WVSMA will be up for passage in the Senate on the last night of session. In an effort to slow down the calendar, the Senate pulled all bills without any amendments off their calendar a few days ago. It is expected that the bills will run on second reading today in order to pass on third reading tomorrow.
Included are:
HB 2380 the pharmaceutical tax exemption for physician practices, clinics and hospitals.
HB 2578 the bill extending the mental health parity law by removing the sunset date from the statute.
HB 2583 the bill increasing the number of metabolic tests done on infants born in WV from 7 to 29.
(click on the bill # to read the full text) |
|
|
Top
|
|
March 09, 2007
| |
|
|
|
Legislative Website:
For more information on any of the bills included in this newsletter or others moving through the Legislature click on the following link:
Bill Status
|
|
| |
|
|
WVSMA Government Relations Team:
Amy N. Tolliver, MS
Government Relations Specialist
West Virginia State Medical Association
amy@wvsma.com
304.925.0342 ext: 25
Nancy S. Tonkin
President
Tonkin Management Group
nstonkin@citynet.net
304.345.6808
Becky King
Tonkin Management Group
bk517@attglobal.net
304.345.6808
|
|
|
