On Thursday, Ohio officials are scheduled to discuss a proposed state law that would require health care professionals to consult an online database before prescribing pain medications, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
The Buckeye State Sheriffs' Association has been working with the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy and state lawmakers to craft the legislation.
Proposal Details
The proposal aims to curb prescription drug misuse by identifying patients who might be "doctor shopping" to obtain certain narcotics.
The measure would make physicians liable for prescribing medications to repeat prescription drug abusers and it would streamline the enforcement process for prescription drug abuse.
Ohio is one of 34 states that operates an electronic prescription monitoring program.
If state legislators approve the measure, Ohio and Nevada would be the only states to require physicians to consult such a database before writing prescriptions (Tribble, Cleveland Plain Dealer, 1/20).