KRS 218A.240: Controlled substances -- Duties and authority of state and local officers,

Cabinet for Health and Family Services, and Kentucky Board of Pharmacy --

Civil proceedings -- Identification of trends -- Identification of prescribers,

dispensers, and patients for licensing board -- Review of hospital's or health

care facility's prescribing and dispensing practices -- Notice to patients of

practitioner's loss of prescribing privileges.

(1) All police officers and deputy sheriffs directly employed fu ll-time by state, county,

city, urban-county, or consolidated local governments, the Department of Kentucky

State Police, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, their officers and agents,

and of all city, county, and Commonwealth's attorneys, and the Attorney General,

within their respective jurisdictions, shall enforce all provisions of this chapter and

cooperate with all agencies charged with the enforcement of the laws of the United

States, of this state, and of all other states relating to controlled substances.

(2) For the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this chapter, the designated agents of

the Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall have the full power and authority

of peace officers in this state, including the power of arrest and t he authority to bear

arms, and shall have the power and authority to administer oaths; to enter upon

premises at all times for the purpose of making inspections; to seize evidence; to

interrogate all persons; to require the production of prescriptions, of books, papers,

documents, or other evidence; to employ special investigators; and to expend funds

for the purpose of obtaining evidence and to use data obtained under KRS

218A.202 in any administrative proceeding before the cabinet.

(3) The Kentucky Board of Pharmacy, its agents and inspectors, shall have the same

powers of inspection and enforcement as the Cabinet for Health and Family

Services.

(4) Designated agents of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the Kentucky

Board of Pharmacy are empow ered to remove from the files of a pharmacy or the

custodian of records for that pharmacy any controlled substance prescription or

other controlled substance record upon tendering a receipt. The receipt shall be

sufficiently detailed to accurately identify the record. A receipt for the record shall

be a defense to a charge of failure to maintain the record.

(5) Notwithstanding the existence or pursuit of any other remedy, civil or criminal, any

law enforcement authority may maintain, in its own name, an act ion to restrain or

enjoin any violation of this chapter or to forfeit any property subject to forfeiture

under KRS 218A.410, irrespective of whether the owner of the property has been

charged with or convicted of any offense under this chapter.

(a) Any civil action against any person brought pursuant to this section may be

instituted in the Circuit Court in any county in which the person resides, in

which any property owned by the person and subject to forfeiture is found, or

in which the person has violated any provision of this chapter.

(b) A final judgment rendered in favor of the Commonwealth in any criminal

proceeding brought under this chapter shall estop the defendant from denying

the essential allegations of the criminal offense in any subsequent civ il

proceeding brought pursuant to this section.

(c) The prevailing party in any civil proceeding brought pursuant to this section

shall recover his or her costs, including a reasonable attorney's fee.

(d) Distribution of funds under this section shall be m ade in the same manner as

in KRS 218A.420, except that if the Commonwealth's attorney has not

initiated the forfeiture action under this section, his or her percentage of the

funds shall go to the agency initiating the forfeiture action.

(6) The Cabinet fo r Health and Family Services shall make or cause to be made

examinations of samples secured under the provisions of this chapter to determine

whether any provision has been violated.

(7) (a) The Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall proactively use the data

compiled in the electronic system created in KRS 218A.202 for investigations,

research, statistical analysis, and educational purposes and shall proactively

identify trends in controlled substance usage and other potential problem

areas. Only cabinet personnel who have undergone training for the electronic

system and who have been approved to use the system shall be authorized

access to the data and reports under this subsection. The cabinet shall notify a

state licensing board listed in KRS 218A.2 05 if a report or analysis conducted

under this subsection indicates that further investigation about improper,

inappropriate or illegal prescribing or dispensing may be necessary by the

board. The board shall consider each report and may, after giving due

consideration to areas of practice, specialties, board certifications, and

appropriate standards of care, request and receive a follow -up report or

analysis containing relevant information as to the prescriber or dispenser and

his or her patients.

(b) The cabinet shall develop criteria, in collaboration with the Board of Medical

Licensure, the Board of Nursing, the Office of Drug Control Policy, and the

Board of Pharmacy, to be used to generate public trend reports from the data

obtained by the system. Mee tings at which the criteria are developed shall be

meetings, as defined in KRS 61.805, that comply with the open meetings

laws, KRS 61.805 to 61.850. The cabinet shall, on a quarterly basis, publish

trend reports from the data obtained by the system. Excep t as provided in

subsection (8) of this section, these trend reports shall not identify an

individual prescriber, dispenser, or patient. Peace officers authorized to

receive data under KRS 218A.202 may request trend reports not specifically

published pursuant to this paragraph except that the report shall not identify an

individual prescriber, dispenser, or patient.

(8) If the cabinet deems it to be necessary and appropriate, upon the request of a state

licensing board listed in KRS 218A.205, the cabinet shall provide the requesting

board with the identity of prescribers, dispensers, and patients used to compile a

specific trend report.

(9) Any hospital or other health care facility may petition the cabinet to review data

from the electronic system specified in KRS 218A.202 as it relates to employees of

that facility to determine if inappropriate prescribing or dispensing practices are

occurring. The cabinet may initiate any investigation in such cases as he or she

determines is appropriate, and may request the assistance from the hospitals or

health care facilities in the investigation.

(10) If the office or clinic of a pr actitioner abruptly closes or is subject to emergency

closure or other enforcement action resulting in a suspension or termination of the

practitioner's controlled substance prescribing privileges, the Cabinet for Health and

Family Services or applicable p rofessional licensing board may use data from the

electronic system established under KRS 218A.202 to issue notification as soon as

practicable to the practitioner's patients to help prevent the disruption of medical

treatment and promote continuity of care.