The California Assembly is considering legislation that would allow the Department of Justice (DOJ) to contract with an interstate sharing database.
“The Department of Justice may enter into an agreement with an entity operating an interstate data share hub for purposes of participating in interjurisdictional information sharing between prescription drug monitoring programs across state lines,” AB 1751 reads.
The DOJ is responsible for maintaining the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES), which monitors the prescription of controlled substances such as opioids. The system allows health-care providers and criminal justice departments to compare information.
CURES tracks the administration of those medications, but the current system does not communicate across jurisdictions.
CURES currently complies with patient and data privacy practices, and the new law would require data sharing systems to also comply.
Assemblymember Evan Low (D-28) sponsored the bill along with other legislation to add Schedule V drugs to the CURES database and limiting the number of prescription pad manufacturers.
