At issue are the significant and, some would say, burdensome rules governing opioid prescribing which require treatment agreements and extensive risk assessment and informed consent procedures. The rule modification, if approved by the three licensing boards, will exempt from all Chapter 21 requirements patients in in-patient facilities and residents of nursing homes, assisted living, and similar facilities if their medications are administered by a licensed, certified, or registered health care professional. The reasoning behind the proposed change is that there is no real risk of patient diversion or misuse of opioids when those drugs are not in the patient’s possession at any time and are administered by a nurse, medical technician, or similar professional.

MMA Board of Directors member Karen Saylor, M.D., was instrumental in bringing the licensing boards’ attention to the problem and in proposing a simple and effective solution.