Gov. Brian Sandoval has signed a statement of emergency endorsing the emergency regulations for reporting overdoses required by the 2017 Control Substance Abuse Prevention Act.
AB474 was approved by the 2017 Legislature and went into effect Jan. 1. It requires the Board of Health to adopt regulations requiring providers to report overdoses and suspected overdoses among patients.
The emergency regulations put those requirements into effect immediately. They require reporting within seven days of a patient’s discharge, including the name and contact information of the provider, medical record number of the suspected overdose and other medical information.
AB474 imposes new prescribing protocols including mandatory risk assessment and informed written consent for an opioid prescription. Those requirements only apply to drugs prescribed for treatment of pain and don’t include restrictions on non-opioids and anti-seizure medications.
“There is no delay in implementation and my office and the Department of Health and Human Services will continue to support our occupational licensing board and association in their efforts to train their constituencies on Assembly Bill 474,” Sandoval said.
The Board of Health is continuing the process of developing permanent regulations.