Murphy strives to protect patients by modernizing addiction treatment

Legislation authored by U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy (R-PA) would grant doctors access to their patients’ addiction treatment histories to prevent them from unwittingly prescribing drugs that could lead to relapses or overdoses.

“This year there will be more overdose deaths than there are names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, a devastating trend that is projected to continue past 2020,” Murphy, a practicing psychologist, said. “Thousands of American lives are at stake. We cannot keep pretending that the current system, our current approach, is working.”

The Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety (OPPS) Act, H.R. 3545, would amend a provision of the Code of Federal Regulations, known as Part 2, that prevents doctors from reviewing their patients’ histories of addiction treatment before prescribing opioids and other drugs.

Part 2, which was established under the Drug Abuse Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation Act of 1972, was initially designed to encourage those with addiction disorders to seek treatment by ensuring confidentiality. H.R. 3545 would bring Part 2 regulations in line with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy protections.

“Right now, information about a patient’s addiction treatment is prohibited from being shared with doctors,” Murphy said. “This deadly segregation of medical records is wreaking havoc on our nation’s ability to respond to the ongoing opioid crisis. You cannot treat the whole patient with half of their medical record. In order to help turn the tide on this crisis and prevent more drug overdose deaths, physicians must have access to their patient’s entire medical history.”

H.R. 3545 would also enhance existing Part 2 protections that prevent addiction histories from being disclosed to assist in criminal prosecution or loss of employment, housing or child custody.

“The Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act will allow doctors to deliver optimal, lifesaving medical care, while maintaining the highest level of privacy for the patient,” he said.