Kentucky General Assembly Passes HB 1

The 2012 legislative session of the Kentucky General Assembly and subsequent special session have now concluded with the passage of HB 1, filed by House Speaker Greg Stumbo.  This legislation focused on the issues of regulation of “pill mills” and prescription drug abuse in Kentucky. 

With the passage of HB 1, legislators were successful in determining a definition for a “pain management facility” and requires that only a physician having a full and active medical/osteopathic license shall have an ownership or interest in such a facility.  The physician/owner must be present at least 50% of the time and hold a specific specialty certification as defined in the legislation.  HB 1 also mandates that the Board promulgate regulations on a host of issues relating to the controlled substances.  One of the regulations that physicians may be most interested will be the one that sets out the mandatory prescribing and dispensing standards for controlled substances in Kentucky.

A copy of the  legislation is provided here for your review.  Please note that the legislation goes into effect on July 20, 2012.

HB 1  (PDF 190KB)