JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri is one step closer to having a statewide prescription drug monitoring program after State Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville, presented Senate Bill 155 to the Missouri Senate Committee on Seniors, Family and Children. The committee heard testimony from physicians, pharmacists and concerned citizens who support the measure.
Senate Bill 155 would establish the Narcotics Control Act and institute a statewide program to monitor the prescription and dispensing of Schedule II, III and IV controlled substances. Missouri is the only state in the nation without a prescription drug monitoring program.
“The director of the Department of Health and Senior Services declared the opioid epidemic as the No. 1 public health crisis facing Missouri,” Sen. Luetkemeyer said. “Passing a PDMP law will not solve the opioid epidemic, but it’s an important tool in the fight against prescription drug abuse. A prescription drug monitoring program will definitely save lives.”
Regional prescription monitoring programs are already in place throughout parts of Missouri, most notably in St. Louis County. Health care professionals appearing before the committee testified that these programs help identify patients who may be abusing prescription painkillers. The committee also heard sometimes emotional testimony from citizens who recalled the loss of loved ones due to drug overdoses.
For more information about Sen. Luetkemeyer, visit www.senate.mo.gov/luetkemeyer.