Title: Safe Disposal of Unused Medication Act
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Safe Disposal of Unused Medication Act
This bill amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow a hospice employee or emergency medical services professional to handle controlled substances in the residence of a hospice patient to assist with the disposal of controlled substances: (1) that are expired, or (2) that are unused after the patient's death.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2659 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2659

   To amend the Controlled Substances Act to authorize employees of 
 hospice programs to handle controlled substances in the residences of 
  certain hospice patients to assist in disposal of those controlled 
                              substances.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 12, 2018

Ms. Collins (for herself, Ms. Hassan, Mrs. Capito, Ms. Baldwin, and Ms. 
    Warren) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Controlled Substances Act to authorize employees of 
 hospice programs to handle controlled substances in the residences of 
  certain hospice patients to assist in disposal of those controlled 
                              substances.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safe Disposal of Unused Medication 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DISPOSAL OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES OF CERTAIN HOSPICE PATIENTS 
              BY EMPLOYEES OF QUALIFIED HOSPICE PROGRAMS.

    (a) In General.--Section 302(g) of the Controlled Substances Act 
(21 U.S.C. 822(g)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(5)(A)(i) An employee of a qualified hospice program or an 
emergency medical services professional, acting within the scope of 
employment and for the purpose of assisting in the disposal of a 
controlled substance in a case described in clause (ii), may handle, in 
the place of residence of a hospice patient, any controlled substance 
that was lawfully dispensed to the hospice patient.
    ``(ii) A case described in this clause is a case in which--
            ``(I) the hospice patient has died; or
            ``(II) the controlled substance is expired.
    ``(iii)(I) For purposes of clause (i), if a State has in place 
requirements to allow an employee of a hospice program, acting within 
the scope of employment and for the purpose of assisting in the 
disposal of a controlled substance in a case described in clause (ii), 
to handle, in the place of residence of a hospice patient, any 
controlled substance that was lawfully dispensed to the hospice 
patient, and the Attorney General determines that those requirements 
provide safeguards equivalent to the safeguards provided under 
subparagraph (C)(vi), the employee of the hospice program shall not be 
required to be an employee of a qualified hospice program.
    ``(II) If the Attorney General determines that the requirements of 
a State described in subclause (I) do not provide safeguards equivalent 
to the safeguards provided under subparagraph (C)(vi), the State may 
file a petition for judicial review of the determination with an 
appropriate district court of the United States.
    ``(B) The Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary, may 
promulgate regulations to authorize an employee of a hospice program, 
acting within the scope of employment and for the purpose of assisting 
in the disposal of a controlled substance, to handle, in the place of 
residence of a hospice patient, any controlled substance that was 
lawfully dispensed to the hospice patient if--
            ``(i) with respect to the controlled substance, the plan of 
        care of the hospice patient has been modified; and
            ``(ii) pursuant to the modification of the plan of care, 
        the hospice patient no longer requires the controlled 
        substance.
    ``(C) In this paragraph--
            ``(i) the term `emergency medical services professional' 
        has the meaning given the term in section 303;
            ``(ii) the term `employee of a hospice program'--
                    ``(I) means a person who is--
                            ``(aa) employed by, or pursuant to 
                        arrangements made by, a hospice program; and
                            ``(bb) licensed or certified to perform 
                        such employment in accordance with applicable 
                        State law; and
                    ``(II) includes--
                            ``(aa) a physician; and
                            ``(bb) a registered nurse;
            ``(iii) the term `employee of a qualified hospice 
        program'--
                    ``(I) means a person who is--
                            ``(aa) employed by, or pursuant to 
                        arrangements made by, a qualified hospice 
                        program; and
                            ``(bb) licensed or certified to perform 
                        such employment in accordance with applicable 
                        State law; and
                    ``(II) includes--
                            ``(aa) a physician; and
                            ``(bb) a registered nurse;
            ``(iv) the terms `hospice care' and `hospice program' have 
        the meanings given those terms in section 1861(dd) of the 
        Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(dd));
            ``(v) the term `hospice patient' means an individual 
        receiving hospice care; and
            ``(vi) the term `qualified hospice program' means a hospice 
        program that--
                    ``(I) has written policies and procedures for 
                assisting in the disposal of a controlled substance of 
                a hospice patient in each of the cases described in 
                subparagraph (A)(ii);
                    ``(II) at the time when the controlled substance of 
                a hospice patient is first ordered--
                            ``(aa) provides a copy of the written 
                        policies and procedures described in subclause 
                        (I) to the hospice patient, or the 
                        representative of the hospice patient, and the 
                        family of the hospice patient; and
                            ``(bb) discusses the policies and 
                        procedures described in subclause (I) with the 
                        hospice patient, or the representative of the 
                        hospice patient, and the family of the hospice 
                        patient in a language and manner that those 
                        individuals understand to ensure that those 
                        individuals are educated regarding the safe 
                        disposal of controlled substances;
                    ``(III) documents in the clinical record of the 
                hospice patient that the written policies and 
                procedures described in subclause (I) were provided and 
                discussed; and
                    ``(IV) at the time when an employee of the hospice 
                program disposes of a controlled substance of a hospice 
                patient in a case described in subparagraph (A)(ii), 
                documents the disposal in the clinical record of the 
                hospice patient.''.
    (b) No Registration Required.--Section 302(c) of the Controlled 
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 822(c)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(4) An employee of a qualified hospice program or an 
        emergency medical services professional, as those terms are 
        defined in subsection (g)(5), who possesses the controlled 
        substance for the purpose of assisting in the disposal of the 
        controlled substance in accordance with subparagraph (A) of 
        that subsection.
            ``(5) An employee of a hospice program, as defined in 
        subsection (g)(5), who possesses the controlled substance for 
        the purpose of assisting in the disposal of the controlled 
        substance in accordance with a regulation issued under 
        subparagraph (B) of that subsection.''.
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