An Act To Establish a Prescription Drug Academic Detailing Program
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 0839
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: TREAT, SCHNEIDER, BRAUTIGAM, CAMPBELL, CONOVER, MILLER, PERRY
Amends: 22 MRSA §2700-A

Legislative Document 
No. 839 
H.P.638 
House of Representatives, February 23, 2007 
An Act To Establish a Prescription Drug Academic Detailing 
Program 
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative TREAT of Farmingdale. 
Cosponsored by Senator SCHNEIDER of Penobscot and 
77l~ 
1J7.1J?tU:~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BRAUTIGAM of Falmouth, CAMPBELL of Newfield, CONOVER of 
Oakland, MILLER of Somerville, PERRY of Calais. 
Primed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA c. 603, sub-c. 1-A is enacted to read: 
SUBCHAPTER 1-A 
PRESCRIPTION DRUG ACADEMIC DETAILING 
§2685. Prescription drug academic detailing program 
By January 1, 2008, the department shall establish a prescrIptIOn drug academic 
detailing program, referred to in this section as "the program," to enhance the health of 
residents of the State, to improve the quality of decisions regarding drug prescribing, to 
encourage better communication between the department and health care practitioners 
participating in publicly funded health programs and to reduce the health complications 
and unnecessary costs associated with inappropriate drug prescribing. 
1. Program design. The department shall design the program after consultation 
with prescribers and dispensers of drugs, carriers and health plans, hospitals, pharmacy 
benefit managers, consumers, the MaineCare Advisory Committee and the MaineCare 
drug utilization review committee under section 3174-M, subsection 2-A. 
2. Definitions. As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, 
the following terms have the following meanings. 
A. "Academic detailing" means the provision of information regarding prescription 
drugs based on scientific and medical research, including information on therapeutic 
and cost-effective use of prescription drugs. 
B. "Carrier" has the same meaning as in Title 24-A, section 430 I-A, section 3. 
C. "Dirigo Health insurance" means the program of health coverage provided under 
Title 24-A, section 6910. 
D. "Dispenser" means a licensed mail order prescription pharmacy as defined in Title 
32, section 13702, subsection 13; a licensed drug outlet as defined in Title 32, section 
702. subsection 10; and any other person or entity licensed to dispense prescription 
drugs under Title 32, chapter 117. 
E. 
"Elderly low-cost drug program" means the elderly low-cost drug program 
provided under section 254-D. 
F. 
"Health plan" means a health plan providing prescription drug coverage as 
authorized under the federal Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and 
Modernization Act of 2003. Public Law 108-173. 
G. "MaineCare program" means the MaineCare program administered under chapter 
855. 
H. "Maine Rx Plus Program" means the Maine Rx Plus Program established under 
section 2681. 
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I. "Prescriber" means a person who is licensed, registered or otherwise authorized in 
the appropriate jurisdiction to prescribe and administer drugs in the course of 
professional practice. 
J. 
"State employee health insurance program" means the state employee health 
insurance program provided under Title 5, section 285. 
3. 
Program components. 
Program components must include outreach and 
education regarding the therapeutic and cost-effective use of prescription drugs based on 
scientific and medical research and made available to prescribers and dispensers of drugs 
in the State, including through written information and through personal visits from 
program staff. 
To the extent possible, program components must also include 
information regarding clinical trials, pharmaceutical efficacy, adverse effects of drugs, 
evidence-based treatment options and drug marketing approaches that are intended to 
circumvent competition from generic and therapeutically equivalent drugs. 
4. 
Program coverage. 
The program must provide outreach and education to 
prescribers and dispensers who participate in, contract with or are reimbursed by state-
funded health care programs, including but not limited to the MaineCare program, the 
Maine Rx Plus Program, Dirigo Health insurance, the elderly low-cost drug program and 
the state employee health insurance program. The program may provide outreach and 
education to carriers, health plans, hospitals, employers and other persons interested in 
the program on a subscription or fee-paying basis under rules adopted by the department. 
5. Funding. The program may be funded from the General Fund, from federal funds 
and from other special revenue funds. One half of the funds collected under section 
2700-A, subsection 4 annually must be allocated to the costs of the program. 
The 
program may accept funds from nongovernmental health access foundations, the Tobacco 
Manufacturers Act under chapter 263, subchapter 3, undesignated funds associated with 
pharmaceutical marketing and pricing practices acquired through litigation or action of 
the Office of the Attorney General and fees from subscriptions, contracts and agreements 
with private payors as established by rule. Savings achieved as a result of the program 
may be retained for operation of the program or paid into the General Fund, at the option 
of the department. 
6. Annual report. By April I st each year the department shall provide to the 
Legislature an annual report on the operation of the program. The report must include 
information on the outreach and education components of the program; revenues, 
expenditures and balances; and savings attributable to the program in state-funded health 
care programs. 
7. Rulemaking. The department shall adopt rules to implement the program. Rules 
adopted under this subsection are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 
375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §2700-A, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2005, c. 683, Pt. B, § 17, 
is further amended to read: 
4. Fees. Beginning April I, 2006, each manufacturer of prescription drugs that are 
provided to Maine residents through the MaineCare program under section 3174-G or the 
I 
elderly low-cost drug program under section 254-D shall pay a fee of $1 ,000 per calendar 
year to the State. Fees collected under this subsection must be used to cover the cost of 
overseeing implementation of this section, including but not limited to maintaining links 
to publicly accessible websites to which manufacturers are posting clinical trial 
information under subsection 3 and other relevant sites, assessing whether and the extent 
to which Maine residents have been harmed by the use of a particular drug and 
undertaking the public education initiative under subsection 5 and the prescription drug 
academic detailing program under section 2685. One half of the annual revenues from 
this subsection must be allocated to and used for the academic detailing program under 
section 2685. Revenues received under this subsection, with the exception of funding 
designated for the academic detailing program under section 2685, must be deposited into 
an Other Special Revenue Funds account to be used for the purposes of this subsection. 
Sec. 3. 22 MRSA §2700-A, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 392, § I, IS 
amended to read: 
5. Public education initiative. The department shall undertake a public education 
initiative to inform residents of the State about clinical trials and drug safety information 
and shall coordinate the public education program with the prescription drug academic 
detailing program under section 2685. 
Sec. 4. Initial program design. In planning for the design of the prescription 
drug academic detailing program under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section 
2685, the Department of Health and Human Services shall investigate initially 
establishing the program collaboratively with the states of New Hampshire and Vermont. 
The department shall review and evaluate use of the educational and assessment materials 
developed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the prescription drug academic 
detailing program that involved the cooperative work of that state and Harvard Medical 
School and shall consider adopting the Pennsylvania program as a starting point for the 
program. The department shall include discussion of these aspects of initial program 
design in the first 2 annual reports to the Legislature. 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services the 
prescription drug academic detailing program to enhance the health of residents of the 
State, to improve the quality of decisions regarding drug prescribing, to encourage better 
communication between the department and health care practitioners participating in 
publicly funded health programs and to reduce the health complications and unnecessary 
costs associated with inappropriate drug prescribing. The bill requires the department to 
investigate initially establishing the program collaboratively with the states of New 
Hampshire and Vermont. The bill requires the department to review and evaluate use of 
the educational and assessment materials developed by the Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania for the prescription drug academic detailing program that involved the 
cooperative work of that state and Harvard Medical School and to consider adopting the 
Pennsylvania prQgram as a starting point for the program. 
The bill coordinates the 
prescription drug academic detailing program with the department's public education 
initiative on prescription drug clinical trials and drug safety information and transfers one 
I 
half of the annual revenues under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section 2700-A, 
subsection 4 for the use of the prescription drug academic detailing program.