115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5041 
AN ACT 
To amend the Controlled Substances Act to authorize the 
employees of a hospice program to handle controlled 
substances lawfully in the possession of a deceased hos-
pice patient for the purpose of disposal. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safe Disposal of Un-
used Medication Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DISPOSAL OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES OF A DE-
CEASED HOSPICE PATIENT BY EMPLOYEES 
OF A QUALIFIED HOSPICE PROGRAM. 
Subsection (g) of section 302 of the Controlled Sub-
stances Act (21 U.S.C. 822) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘(5)(A) In the case of a person receiving hospice care, 
an employee of a qualified hospice program, acting within 
the scope of employment, may handle, without being reg-
istered under this section, any controlled substance that 
was lawfully dispensed to the person receiving hospice 
care, for the purpose of disposal of the controlled sub-
stance after the death of such person, so long as such dis-
posal occurs onsite in accordance with all applicable Fed-
eral, State, Tribal, and local law. 
‘‘(B) For the purposes of this paragraph: 
‘‘(i) The terms ‘hospice care’ and ‘hospice pro-
gram’ have the meanings given to those terms in 
section 1861(dd) of the Social Security Act. 
‘‘(ii) The term ‘employee of a qualified hospice 
program’ means a physician, nurse, or other person 
who—
‘‘(I) is employed by, or pursuant to ar-
rangements made by, a qualified hospice pro-
gram; 
‘‘(II)(aa) is licensed to perform medical or 
nursing services by the jurisdiction in which the 
person receiving hospice care was located; and 
‘‘(bb) is acting within the scope of such 
employment in accordance with applicable State 
law; and 
‘‘(III) has completed training through the 
qualified hospice program regarding the dis-
posal of controlled substances in a secure and 
responsible manner so as to discourage abuse, 
misuse, or diversion. 
‘‘(iii) The term ‘qualified hospice program’ 
means a hospice program that— 
‘‘(I) has written policies and procedures for 
assisting in the disposal of the controlled sub-
stances of a person receiving hospice care after 
the person’s death; 
‘‘(II) at the time when the controlled sub-
stances are first ordered— 
‘‘(aa) provides a copy of the written 
policies and procedures to the patient or 
patient representative and family;
‘‘(bb) discusses the policies and proce-
dures with the patient or representative 
and the family in a language and manner 
that they understand to ensure that these 
parties are educated regarding the safe 
disposal of controlled substances; and 
‘‘(cc) documents in the patient’s clin-
ical record that the written policies and 
procedures were provided and discussed; 
and 
‘‘(III) at the time following the disposal of 
the controlled substances— 
‘‘(aa) documents in the patient’s clin-
ical record the type of controlled sub-
stance, dosage, route of administration, 
and quantity so disposed; and 
‘‘(bb) the time, date, and manner in 
which that disposal occurred.’’. 
Passed the House of Representatives June 12, 2018. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5041 
AN ACT 
To amend the Controlled Substances Act to author-
ize the employees of a hospice program to handle 
controlled substances lawfully in the possession 
of a deceased hospice patient for the purpose of 
disposal.