Contact: Rep. Debra Kolste, (608) 266-7503

(MADISON) – Rep. Debra Kolste (D-Janesville) today announced she has introduced Assembly Bill 125, legislation that will allow pharmacists to extend current prescriptions in the event that the prescribing doctor cannot be reached.

Pharmacists would be authorized to extend a patient’s current prescription and dispense up to a 7 day refill supply as long as certain criteria are met. The refill cannot be for a controlled substance, the drug must be essential to the health and life of the patient, and the patient must be on a consistent drug therapy regimen. Patients would also be limited to one emergency refill per year.

“There are instances in which patients are unable to reach their prescribing physician and could be without life sustaining medication,” Kolste said. “This can create an emergency situation for patients on regimented treatments and put pharmacists in an ethical quandary, debating whether or not they should provide medication without the consent of the physician. This bill allows a pharmacist to use their professional judgement and avoid a potentially fatal situation.”

Kolste, the ranking Democrat on the Assembly Committee on Health, noted that five other Midwestern states have passed this proactive legislation.

The bill has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Health and shares broad bi-partisan support.

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