Section 4729.80 | Information provided from drug database - record of requests - confidentiality.

• Effective: October 3, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly

(A) If the state board of pharmacy establishes and maintains a drug database pursuant to section 4729.75 of the Revised Code, the board is authorized or required to provide information from the database only as follows:

(1) On receipt of a request from a designated representative of a government entity responsible for the licensure, regulation, or discipline of health care professionals with authority to prescribe, administer, or dispense drugs, the board may provide to the representative information from the database relating to the professional who is the subject of an active investigation being conducted by the government entity or relating to a professional who is acting as an expert witness for the government entity in such an investigation.

(2) On receipt of a request from a federal officer, or a state or local officer of this or any other state, whose duties include enforcing laws relating to drugs, the board shall provide to the officer information from the database relating to the person who is the subject of an active investigation of a drug abuse offense, as defined in section 2925.01 of the Revised Code, being conducted by the officer's employing government entity.

(3) Pursuant to a subpoena issued by a grand jury, the board shall provide to the grand jury information from the database relating to the person who is the subject of an investigation being conducted by the grand jury.

(4) Pursuant to a subpoena, search warrant, or court order in connection with the investigation or prosecution of a possible or alleged criminal offense, the board shall provide information from the database as necessary to comply with the subpoena, search warrant, or court order.

(5) On receipt of a request from a prescriber or the prescriber's delegate approved by the board, the board shall provide to the prescriber a report of information from the database relating to a patient who is either a current patient of the prescriber or a potential patient of the prescriber based on a referral of the patient to the prescriber, if all of the following conditions are met:

(a) The prescriber certifies in a form specified by the board that it is for the purpose of providing medical treatment to the patient who is the subject of the request;

(b) The prescriber has not been denied access to the database by the board.

(6) On receipt of a request from a pharmacist or the pharmacist's delegate approved by the board, the board shall provide to the pharmacist information from the database relating to a current patient of the pharmacist, if the pharmacist certifies in a form specified by the board that it is for the purpose of the pharmacist's practice of pharmacy involving the patient who is the subject of the request and the pharmacist has not been denied access to the database by the board.

(7) On receipt of a request from an individual seeking the individual's own database information in accordance with the procedure established in rules adopted under section 4729.84 of the Revised Code, the board may provide to the individual the individual's own prescription history.

(8) On receipt of a request from a medical director or a pharmacy director of a managed care organization that has entered into a contract with the department of medicaid under section 5167.10 of the Revised Code and a data security agreement with the board required by section 5167.14 of the Revised Code, the board shall provide to the medical director or the pharmacy director information from the database relating to a medicaid recipient enrolled in the managed care organization, including information in the database related to prescriptions for the recipient that were not covered or reimbursed under a program administered by the department of medicaid.

(9) On receipt of a request from the medicaid director, the board shall provide to the director information from the database relating to a recipient of a program administered by the department of medicaid, including information in the database related to prescriptions for the recipient that were not covered or paid by a program administered by the department.

(10) On receipt of a request from a medical director of a managed care organization that has entered into a contract with the administrator of workers' compensation under division (B)(4) of section 4121.44 of the Revised Code and a data security agreement with the board required by section 4121.447 of the Revised Code, the board shall provide to the medical director information from the database relating to a claimant under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code assigned to the managed care organization, including information in the database related to prescriptions for the claimant that were not covered or reimbursed under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code, if the administrator of workers' compensation confirms, upon request from the board, that the claimant is assigned to the managed care organization.

(11) On receipt of a request from the administrator of workers' compensation, the board shall provide to the administrator information from the database relating to a claimant under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code, including information in the database related to prescriptions for the claimant that were not covered or reimbursed under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code.

(12) On receipt of a request from a prescriber or the prescriber's delegate approved by the board, the board shall provide to the prescriber information from the database relating to a patient's mother, if the prescriber certifies in a form specified by the board that it is for the purpose of providing medical treatment to a newborn or infant patient diagnosed as opioid dependent and the prescriber has not been denied access to the database by the board.

(13) On receipt of a request from the director of health, the board shall provide to the director information from the database relating to the duties of the director or the department of health in implementing the Ohio violent death reporting system established under section 3701.93 of the Revised Code.

(14) On receipt of a request from a requestor described in division (A)(1), (2), (5), or (6) of this section who is from or participating with another state's prescription monitoring program, the board may provide to the requestor information from the database, but only if there is a written agreement under which the information is to be used and disseminated according to the laws of this state.

(15) On receipt of a request from a delegate of a retail dispensary licensed under Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code who is approved by the board to serve as the dispensary's delegate, the board shall provide to the delegate a report of information from the database pertaining only to a patient's use of medical marijuana, if both of the following conditions are met:

(a) The delegate certifies in a form specified by the board that it is for the purpose of dispensing medical marijuana for use in accordance with Chapter 3796. of the Revised Code.

(b) The retail dispensary or delegate has not been denied access to the database by the board.

(16) On receipt of a request from a judge of a program certified by the Ohio supreme court as a specialized docket program for drugs, the board shall provide to the judge, or an employee of the program who is designated by the judge to receive the information, information from the database that relates specifically to a current or prospective program participant.

(17) On receipt of a request from a coroner, deputy coroner, or coroner's delegate approved by the board, the board shall provide to the requestor information from the database relating to a deceased person about whom the coroner is conducting or has conducted an autopsy or investigation.

(18) On receipt of a request from a prescriber, the board may provide to the prescriber a summary of the prescriber's prescribing record if such a record is created by the board. Information in the summary is subject to the confidentiality requirements of this chapter.

(19)(a) On receipt of a request from a pharmacy's responsible person, the board may provide to the responsible person a summary of the pharmacy's dispensing record if such a record is created by the board. Information in the summary is subject to the confidentiality requirements of this chapter.

(b) As used in division (A)(19)(a) of this section, "responsible person" has the same meaning as in rules adopted by the board under section 4729.26 of the Revised Code.

(20) The board may provide information from the database without request to a prescriber or pharmacist who is authorized to use the database pursuant to this chapter.

(21)(a) On receipt of a request from a prescriber or pharmacist, or the prescriber's or pharmacist's delegate, who is a designated representative of a peer review committee, the board shall provide to the committee information from the database relating to a prescriber who is subject to the committee's evaluation, supervision, or discipline if the information is to be used for one of those purposes. The board shall provide only information that it determines, in accordance with rules adopted under section 4729.84 of the Revised Code, is appropriate to be provided to the committee.

(b) As used in division (A)(21)(a) of this section, "peer review committee" has the same meaning as in section 2305.25 of the Revised Code, except that it includes only a peer review committee of a hospital or a peer review committee of a nonprofit health care corporation that is a member of the hospital or of which the hospital is a member.

(22) On receipt of a request from a requestor described in division (A)(5) or (6) of this section who is from or participating with a prescription monitoring program that is operated by a federal agency and approved by the board, the board may provide to the requestor information from the database, but only if there is a written agreement under which the information is to be used and disseminated according to the laws of this state.

(23) Any personal health information submitted to the board pursuant to section 4729.772 of the Revised Code may be provided by the board only as authorized by the submitter of the information and in accordance with rules adopted under section 4729.84 of the Revised Code.

(24) On receipt of a request from a person described in division (A)(5), (6), or (17) of this section who is participating in a drug overdose fatality review committee described in section 307.631 of the Revised Code, the board may provide to the requestor information from the database, but only if there is a written agreement under which the information is to be used and disseminated according to the laws of this state.

(25) On receipt of a request from a person described in division (A)(5), (6), or (17) of this section who is participating in a suicide fatality review committee described in section 307.641 of the Revised Code, the board may provide to the requestor information from the database, but only if there is a written agreement under which the information is to be used and disseminated according to the laws of this state.

(26) On receipt of a request from a designated representative of the division of marijuana control in the department of commerce, the board shall provide to the representative information from the database relating to an individual who, or entity that, is the subject of an active investigation being conducted by the division.

(B) The state board of pharmacy shall maintain a record of each individual or entity that requests information from the database pursuant to this section. In accordance with rules adopted under section 4729.84 of the Revised Code, the board may use the records to document and report statistics and law enforcement outcomes.

The board may provide records of an individual's requests for database information only to the following:

(1) A designated representative of a government entity that is responsible for the licensure, regulation, or discipline of health care professionals with authority to prescribe, administer, or dispense drugs who is involved in an active criminal or disciplinary investigation being conducted by the government entity of the individual who submitted the requests for database information;

(2) A federal officer, or a state or local officer of this or any other state, whose duties include enforcing laws relating to drugs and who is involved in an active investigation being conducted by the officer's employing government entity of the individual who submitted the requests for database information;

(3) A designated representative of the department of medicaid regarding a prescriber who is treating or has treated a recipient of a program administered by the department and who submitted the requests for database information.

(C) Information contained in the database and any information obtained from it is confidential and is not a public record. Information contained in the records of requests for information from the database is confidential and is not a public record. Information contained in the database that does not identify a person, including any licensee or registrant of the board or other entity, may be released in summary, statistical, or aggregate form.

(D) A pharmacist or prescriber shall not be held liable in damages to any person in any civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property on the basis that the pharmacist or prescriber did or did not seek or obtain information from the database.

Last updated September 25, 2023 at 10:15 AM

Available Versions of this Section

• September 15, 2014 – House Bill 483 - 130th General Assembly
• September 29, 2015 – House Bill 64 - 131st General Assembly
• September 8, 2016 – House Bill 523 - 131st General Assembly
• September 29, 2017 – Amended by House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly
• December 16, 2020 – Amended by House Bill 341 - 133rd General Assembly
• September 30, 2021 – Amended by House Bill 110 - 134th General Assembly
• October 3, 2023 – Amended by House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly