§ 741. — 741. (Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 231, Sec. 2.)

(a)
Notwithstanding any other law, when prescribing an opioid or benzodiazepine medication to a patient, a prescriber shall do the following:
(1)
Offer the patient a prescription for naloxone hydrochloride or another drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for the complete or partial reversal of opioid-induced respiratory depression when one or more of the following conditions are present:
(A)
The prescription dosage for the patient is 90 or more morphine milligram equivalents of an opioid medication per day.
(B)
An opioid medication is
prescribed within a year from the date a prescription for benzodiazepine has been dispensed to the patient.
(C)
The patient presents with an increased risk for opioid overdose, including a patient with a history of opioid overdose, a patient with a history of opioid use disorder, or a patient at risk for returning to a high dose of opioid medication to which the patient is no longer tolerant.
(2)
Consistent with the existing standard of care, provide education to the patient on opioid overdose prevention and the use of naloxone hydrochloride or another drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for the complete or partial reversal of opioid-induced respiratory depression.
(3)
Consistent with the
existing standard of care, provide education on opioid overdose prevention and the use of naloxone hydrochloride or another drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for the complete or partial reversal of opioid-induced respiratory depression to one or more persons designated by the patient, or, for a patient who is a minor, to the minor’s parent or guardian.
(b)
A prescriber is not required to provide the education specified in paragraphs (2) or (3) of subdivision (a) if the patient receiving the prescription declines the education or has received the education within the past 24 months.
(c)
This section does not apply to a prescriber under any of the following circumstances:
(1)
When prescribing to an inmate or a youth under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation or the Division of Juvenile Justice within the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
(2)
When ordering medications to be administered to a patient while the patient is in either an inpatient or outpatient setting.
(3)
When prescribing medications to a patient who is terminally ill, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 11159.2 of the Health and Safety Code.

Legislative History

Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 231, Sec. 2. (AB 714) Effective September 5, 2019.