A 265: Relates to the availability of opioid reversal agents; requires the department of health to make available any formulation and dosage of opioid reversal agent approved by the federal food and drug administration.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 265 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. STECK, NOVAKHOV, DeSTEFANO, SIMON, DAVILA, BENDETT, CHANG, LEVENBERG, WEPRIN, PAULIN, K. BROWN -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. WOERNER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law and the public health law, in relation to the availability of opioid reversal agents The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision (l) of section 19.09 of the mental hygiene law, 2 as added by chapter 434 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 (l)(1) The office, in consultation with the department of health, 5 shall maintain on its website a publicly available directory of all 6 distributors of opioid [antagonists] reversal agents to the public, 7 including but not limited to, pharmacies, prevention programs and not- 8 for-profits. As used in this subdivision, the following terms shall have 9 the following meanings: 10 (i) "Opioid" means an opiate as defined in section thirty-three 11 hundred two of the public health law. 12 (ii) "Opioid [antagonist] reversal agents" means a federal food and 13 drug administration-approved drug that, when administered, negates or 14 neutralizes in whole or in part the pharmacological effects of an opioid 15 in the body. The [opioid antagonist shall be limited to naloxone or 16 other medications approved by the department of health for this purpose] 17 department of health shall make available any formulation and dosage of 18 opioid reversal agents that are approved by the federal food and drug 19 administration. 20 (iii) "Purchaser" means any community organization, municipality, 21 pharmacy, medical facility, hospital, or any other entity, that accesses 22 opioid reversal drugs through the New York state standing order. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00351-01-5 
 A. 265 2 1 (2) The directory required by this subdivision shall include and be 2 searchable by the following information: 3 (i) addresses of each distributor of opioid [antagonists] reversal 4 agents; 5 (ii) contact information, such as phone numbers or email addresses, 6 for each distributor; 7 (iii) services offered by each distributor at each location if more 8 than one, as well as information providing which opioid [antagonists] 9 reversal agents are currently available at each distributor; 10 (iv) special populations served; 11 (v) insurance providers accepted; 12 (vi) hours of operation of each distributor; 13 (vii) contact information of opioid addiction prevention programs; and 14 (viii) any other information the commissioner deems necessary. 15 (3) The office may utilize an existing directory to satisfy the 16 requirements of this subdivision. 17 (4) The office shall allow for choice of any formulation and dosage of 18 opioid reversal agents that are approved by the federal food and drug 19 administration in the purchase, distribution or authorization to 20 prescribe or dispense such products. The department shall cover the cost 21 of any formulation and/or dosage of any federal food and drug adminis- 22 tration-approved nasal naloxone product. Any other product where the 23 cost exceeds that of highest-priced nasal naloxone product, that cost 24 overrun shall be borne by the purchaser. 25 § 2. Subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 26 3309 of the public health law, as amended by chapter 42 of the laws of 27 2014, is amended to read as follows: 28 (i) "Opioid [antagonist] reversal agents" means a drug approved by the 29 Food and Drug Administration that, when administered, negates or 30 neutralizes in whole or in part the pharmacological effects of an opioid 31 in the body. ["Opioid antagonist reversal agents" shall be limited to 32 naloxone and other medications approved by the department for such 33 purpose] The department shall make available any formulation and dosage 34 of opioid reversal agents that are approved by the federal Food and Drug 35 Administration. 36 § 3. Section 3309 of the public health law is amended by adding a new 37 subdivision 9 to read as follows: 38 9. Any purchase, distribution or authorization to prescribe pursuant 39 to this section by the commissioner shall allow for choice of any formu- 40 lation or dosage that is approved by the federal Food and Drug Adminis- 41 tration. The department shall cover the cost of any formulation and/or 42 dosage of any federal Food and Drug Administration-approved nasal nalox- 43 one product. Any other product where the cost exceeds that of highest- 44 priced nasal naloxone product, that cost overrun shall be borne by the 45 purchaser. 46 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.