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D.C. Municipal Regulations (Last Updated: September 13, 2017) |
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Title 17. BUSINESS, OCCUPATIONS, AND PROFESSIONALS |
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Chapter 17-103. PRESCRIPTION DRUG MONITORING PROGRAM |
Section 17-10308. DISCRETIONARY DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION
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10308.1 The Director may, at the Director’s discretion, disclose prescription monitoring data in the Program’s possession as permitted by the Act to certain persons, provided the request is made in the format designated in § 10303 and the PDMP Instruction Manual and meets the requirements of this chapter.
10308.2 The Director may disclose personal dispensing information concerning a patient who is over the age of eighteen (18) years to that patient, provided the request is accompanied by a copy of a valid photo identification issued by a government agency of any jurisdiction in the United States verifying that the recipient is over the age of eighteen (18) and includes a notarized signature of the requesting party. If the patient is under the age of eighteen (18), the information may be disclosed to the parent or legal guardian of the patient, provided the disclosure is not otherwise prohibited by District or federal law.
10308.3 The Director may disclose information relevant to an investigation or regulatory proceeding of a specific dispenser or prescriber to other regulatory authorities concerned with granting, limiting, or denying licenses, certificates, or registrations to practice a health profession when the regulatory authority licenses the dispenser or prescriber, or the dispenser or prescriber is seeking licensure by the regulatory authority making the request, provided the request is related to an allegation of a possible controlled substance violation and is accompanied by an agency case number or other identifier sufficient to confirm an existing bona fide individual investigation.
10308.4 The Director may disclose to designated employees of the Department of Health Care Finance, or to the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Inspector General, as appropriate, the following:
(a) Information relevant to an investigation relating to a specific dispenser or prescriber who is a participating provider in the District Medicaid program, DC Health Care Alliance, or any other public health care program;
(b) Information relating to an investigation concerning a specific patient who is currently eligible for and receiving, or who has been eligible for and has received, medical assistance services; or
(c) Other information relevant to the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Inspector General related to a specific prescriber, dispenser, or patient.
10308.5 Requests for information made pursuant to § 10308.4 of this chapter shall be made in a format designated by the Program and shall contain:
(a)An agency case number or other identifier sufficient to identify an existing bona fide individual investigation;
(b) A specified time period to be covered in the report;
(c) The identification of the specific patient, prescriber, or dispenser for whom the report is to be made; and
(d) The name, title, and original signature of the official under whose authority the request is made.
10308.6 The Director may disclose information relevant to the determination of the cause of death of a specific patient to the designated employees of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, provided that the request is made in a format designated by the Program and signed by the Chief Medical Examiner.
10308.7 To request prescription monitoring data from the Program pursuant to this section, authorized employees shall register with the Program.
10308.8 A request for registration as an authorized agent shall be accompanied by:
(a) An attestation from the applicant's employer confirming the identity of the applicant and the applicant’s eligibility to receive the reports; and
(b) An attestation from the applicant that the prescription monitoring data will not be further disclosed and will only be used for the purposes stated in the request and in accordance with law.
10308.9 A registration as an authorized agent issued pursuant to this subchapter shall expire on June 30th of each even-numbered year or at any time the agent leaves, or otherwise becomes ineligible to receive information from the Program. The employer shall notify the Program, in writing, within twenty-four (24) hours when an agent leaves his or her current employment or otherwise becomes ineligible to receive information from the Program.
10308.10 The Director may disclose information for bona fide research or education purposes to qualified personnel in response to requests determined by the Program to be consistent with institutional review board protocols and human subjects research protections, provided that:
(a) Data elements that would reasonably identify a specific patient, prescriber, or dispenser shall be deleted or redacted from the prescription monitoring data prior to disclosure;
(b) The request is made in a format designated by the Program and is signed by the Chief Researcher or Principal educator. The request shall be accompanied by the requestor’s credentials, and a written proposal or abstract explaining the purpose and scope of the research, analysis, education, or study plan with sufficient detail to enable the Program to determine the validity of the request and abilities of the requestor; and
(c) The release of information to the requestor shall only be made pursuant to a signed agreement between the qualified personnel of the requestor and the Director to ensure compliance with the Act.
10308.11 With the exception of personal dispensing information provided to a patient or the parents or legal guardian of a patient, all requests for disclosure of prescription monitoring data shall by accompanied by an attestation that the prescription data will not be further disclosed and shall only be used for the purposes stated in the request and in accordance with the law.