FINAL BILL REPORT

                 SHB 2452

                          C 70 L 98

                     Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description:  Defining medication assistance in community‑based settings.

Sponsors:  By House Committee on Health Care (originally sponsored by Representatives Backlund, Cody, Parlette, Kastama, DeBolt, Dyer, Lambert, Koster, Sherstad, Benson, Anderson and Zellinsky).

House Committee on Health Care

Senate Committee on Health & Long-Term Care

Background:  Only practitioners with prescriptive authority specified by law may administer prescription or legend drugs. These include physicians, osteopathic physicians, physician assistants, dentists, podiatrists, veterinarians, and to a limited extent advanced registered nurse practitioners, optometrists and naturopaths.  Administration of legend drugs includes the direct application of a legend drug by injection, inhalation, ingestion or other means, to the body of a patient.

Patients may also administer their own legend drugs in consultation with the practitioner.  But a physical or mental limitation may prevent them from self-administering their drugs and they may require some mechanical assistance.  There is no consistent definition in law for medication assistance, which is generally the act of assisting patients to self-administer their own medications by a person other than a practitioner.  Residents of boarding homes may receive medication assistance, and residents of adult family homes use enablers for facilitating the self-administration of their medications.  Medication assistance can take different forms such as opening containers for the patient, or handing the container or medication to the patient.

Summary:  A legislative statement is made that individuals residing in community-based settings, might need medication assistance because of a physical or mental limitation that prevents them from self-administering their own legend drugs. The right of an individual to refuse medications and the requirements for informed consent are not affected.

Medication assistance is defined in the Legend Drug Act as assistance rendered by a nonpractitioner to an individual residing in an adult family home, boarding home or residential care setting for the developmentally disabled, including an individual's own home to facilitate the individual to self-administer a legend drug or controlled substance.  It includes reminding the individual, placing the medication in the individual's hand, or other means defined by rule.  A nonpractitioner may help prepare legend drugs or controlled substances where a practitioner has determined that this is necessary and appropriate.  Medication assistance does not include intravenous medications or injectable medications.

Votes on Final Passage:

House970

Senate450

Effective:June 11, 1998