Hospice staff transferring the controlled substances of deceased persons to drug disposal programs

What it does

Summary by the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

This bill authorizes a hospice worker to receive written authorization from a personal representative or trustee of a deceased person's estate or trust, or an adult beneficiary of the estate or trust, to lawfully transfer a controlled substance to a drug disposal program that is authorized under state or federal law. Under the bill, the authorization is valid only if it satisfies certain conditions, including that the authorization describes the controlled substance with reasonable specificity and that the authorization and the controlled substance were obtained by the hospice worker without the payment of money or something else of value.

Under current law, a person may not, and it is often a crime to, deliver, receive, or possess certain controlled substances unless the person is a licensed pharmacist or other licensed practitioner, has a valid prescription for the controlled substance, or lawfully possesses the controlled substance for the purpose of transferring it to a drug disposal program that is authorized under state or federal law.

Who's behind it

11 lawmakers are its authors⁠. 8 are Republicans and 3 are Democrats.

10 more lawmakers signed on in support⁠.