“A bill to expand access to methadone through alternative care models using pharmacies.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section waives registration requirements for methadone medication for opioid use disorder and directs the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary, to register qualified practitioners to prescribe it for dispensing through pharmacies. Eligible practitioners must hold board certification in addiction medicine or psychiatry from specified bodies or meet Secretary-established standards. Prescriptions must use electronic prescribing for liquid or dispersible tablet formulations, comply with quantity limits, and include documented informed consent on confidentiality differences. The treatment may occur via telemedicine and supplements care from opioid treatment programs. States may request cessation of such registrations. Pharmacies require no separate registration to dispense. The DEA Administrator must report annually to Congress, beginning 180 days after enactment, on the number of registered practitioners by state, state opt-out requests, revocations, and pharmacy orders for the specified formulations.