from reporting as authorized under subsection 
(d)(2)(C). 
‘‘(2) PROGRESS REPORT.—Not later than 3 years 
after the date on which funds are first appropriated 
under this section, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) complete a study that— 
‘‘(i) determines the progress of States 
in establishing and implementing controlled 
substance monitoring programs under this 
section; 
‘‘(ii) provides an analysis of the extent 
to which the operation of controlled sub-
stance monitoring programs have reduced 
inappropriate use, abuse, or diversion of 
controlled substances or affected patient ac-
cess to appropriate pain care in States op-
erating such programs; 
‘‘(iii) determines the progress of States 
in achieving interoperability between con-
trolled substance monitoring programs, in-
cluding an assessment of technical and legal 
barriers to such activities and recommenda-
tions for addressing these barriers; 
‘‘(iv) determines the feasibility of im-
plementing a real-time electronic controlled
substance monitoring program, including 
the costs associated with establishing such a 
program; 
‘‘(v) provides an analysis of the pri-
vacy protections in place for the informa-
tion reported to the controlled substance 
monitoring program in each State receiving 
a grant for the establishment or operation of 
such program, and any recommendations 
for additional requirements for protection of 
this information; 
‘‘(vi) determines the feasibility of im-
plementing technological alternatives to cen-
tralized data storage, such as peer-to-peer 
file sharing or data pointer systems, in con-
trolled substance monitoring programs and 
the potential for such alternatives to en-
hance the privacy and security of individ-
ually identifiable data; and 
‘‘(vii) evaluates the penalties that 
States have enacted for the unauthorized use 
and disclosure of information maintained 
in the controlled substance monitoring pro-
gram, and reports on the criteria used by 
the Secretary to determine whether such
penalties qualify as appropriate pursuant 
to this section; and 
‘‘(B) submit a report to the Congress on the 
results of the study. 
‘‘(k) PREFERENCE.—Beginning 3 years after the date 
on which funds are first appropriated to carry out this sec-
tion, the Secretary, in awarding any competitive grant that 
is related to drug abuse (as determined by the Secretary) 
and for which only States are eligible to apply, shall give 
preference to any State with an application approved under 
this section. The Secretary shall have the discretion to apply 
such preference to States with existing controlled substance 
monitoring programs that meet minimum requirements 
under this section or to States that put forth a good faith 
effort to meet those requirements (as determined by the Sec-
retary). 
‘‘(l) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—A State may establish 
an advisory council to assist in the establishment, im-
plementation, or improvement of a controlled sub-
stance monitoring program under this section. 
‘‘(2) 
LIMITATION.—A 
State 
may 
not 
use 
amounts received under a grant under this section for 
the operations of an advisory council established 
under paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the 
Congress that, in establishing an advisory council 
under this subsection, a State should consult with ap-
propriate professional boards and other interested 
parties. 
‘‘(m) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘bona fide patient’ means an indi-
vidual who is a patient of the practitioner involved. 
‘‘(2) The term ‘controlled substance’ means a 
drug that is included in schedule II, III, or IV of sec-
tion 202(c) of the Controlled Substance Act. 
‘‘(3) The term ‘dispense’ means to deliver a con-
trolled substance to an ultimate user by, or pursuant 
to the lawful order of, a practitioner, irrespective of 
whether the dispenser uses the Internet or other means 
to effect such delivery. 
‘‘(4) The term ‘dispenser’ means a physician, 
pharmacist, or other person that dispenses a con-
trolled substance to an ultimate user. 
‘‘(5) The term ‘interoperability’ with respect to a 
State controlled substance monitoring program means 
the ability of the program to electronically share re-
ported information, including each of the required re-
port components described in subsection (d), with an-
other State if the information concerns either the dis-