Sen. Sonya Jaquez Lewis

In 2019, the Colorado general assembly enacted, and the governor subsequently signed into law, the Canadian prescription drug importation program (program) in the department of health care policy and financing (department). The department is directed to request approval of the program on or before September 1, 2020, from the United States secretary of health and human services and to implement the program upon receipt of approval. The bill states that the department may expand the program to allow a manufacturer, wholesale distributor, or pharmacy from a nation other than Canada to export prescription drugs into the state under the program if certain conditions are met. If, upon the satisfaction of these conditions, the department decides to expand the program, the executive director of the department shall notify the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives, as well as the health and human services committee of the senate and the health and insurance committee of the house of representatives, or any successor committees, of the department's intent to do so. The executive director shall provide the notice at least 30 days before the program is expanded, and the notice may include any recommendations of the department for legislation to amend the program to reflect its expansion. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill requires an individual who owns a firearm to report the loss or theft of that firearm to a law enforcement agency within 48 hours after discovering that the firearm was lost or stolen. A first offense for failure to make such a report is a petty offense punishable by a twenty-five dollar fine and a second or subsequent offense is a class 3 misdemeanor. The 48-hour reporting requirement does not apply to a licensed gun dealer. The bill requires a law enforcement agency that receives a report of a lost or stolen firearm to enter information about the lost or stolen firearm into the national crime information center database. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

To protect bee and other pollinator populations throughout the state, the bill requires the commissioner of agriculture (commissioner), on or before March 1, 2021, to adopt rules to regulate the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and sulfoximine pesticides by classifying specific neonicotinoid pesticides and sulfoximine pesticides as restricted-use pesticides. The commissioner's rules must exempt from the restricted use of the pesticides their use as indoor pest control, personal care, and pet care products; however, the commissioner, thereafter, may amend the rules to disallow their use as indoor pest control, personal care, or pet care products if the commissioner determines that another commercially available product that is not a neonicotinoid pesticide or a sulfoximine pesticide is as or more effective than a neonicotinoid pesticide or a sulfoximine pesticide when used in accordance with the product's label directions for the same indoor pest control, personal care, or pet care use or uses. The commissioner's rules regarding the restricted use of neonicotinoid pesticides and sulfoximine pesticides must not apply to commercial applicators, limited commercial applicators, public applicators, qualified supervisors, certified operators, and private applicators. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Energy Legislation Review Interim Study Committee. The bill requires that all diesel fuel sold or offered for sale in nonattainment areas in Colorado between June 1 and September 15 of each year, commencing June 1, 2021, be blended with and contain at least 5% biodiesel, which includes renewable diesel , and that all diesel fuel sold or offered for sale in Colorado between June 1 and September 15 of each year, commencing June 1, 2023, be blended with and contain at least 10% biodiesel. The blending requirement does not apply to diesel fuel used in locomotives or off-road mining equipment. The air quality control commission, in consultation with the director of the division of oil and public safety in the department of labor and employment shall promulgate rules regarding the blending standard, including rules to establish a waiver process and to require labeling on a bill of lading of biodiesel-blended fuel to reflect the percentage of biodiesel included in the blended fuel when the blend is equal to or above 5% biodiesel. The division may use money in the petroleum storage tank fund to implement the bill. (Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.) (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Beginning January 1, 2021, the act: Prohibits a pharmacy benefit management firm (PBM) from reimbursing a pharmacy in an amount less than the amount that the PBM reimburses any affiliate for the same pharmacy services; Prohibits PBMs from retroactively reducing payment on a clean claim submitted by a pharmacy unless as the result of an audit conducted in accordance with state law; and Requires health insurers that contract with PBMs to ensure that the PBMs are complying with this prohibition. The division of insurance is authorized to promulgate rules to establish the manner in which carriers and pharmacy benefit management firms are required to show compliance with the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Pharmacy technicians - regulation by state board of pharmacy - certification - provisional certification - criminal history record checks - renewal - continuing education - unprofessional conduct - discipline - supervision by pharmacist - authorized activities - sunset review - appropriation. The act requires pharmacy technicians practicing in Colorado on or after March 30, 2020, to obtain a certification from the state board of pharmacy (board). An applicant for certification by the board must provide proof of certification by a board-approved, nationally recognized organization that certifies pharmacy technicians and must either submit to a criminal history record check in the form and manner determined by the board by rule or provide evidence of submitting to a criminal history record check at the time of hire or as a condition of national certification as a pharmacy technician. If an applicant is not certified by a national certifying organization at the time of application for state certification, the board may grant a provisional certification to the applicant to allow the applicant up to 18 months or, if granted a hardship extension, an additional period determined by the board, to obtain national certification. A provisional certification is not renewable, and if the provisional certificant fails to obtain the national certification within the 18-month period or extended period granted by the board, the provisional certification expires and the person cannot practice as a pharmacy technician until the person satisfies all requirements for certification by the board. To renew a certification, in addition to board requirements for renewal, a pharmacy technician must satisfy renewal and continuing education requirements of the national accrediting organization that certified the pharmacy technician. Similar to pharmacists and interns, a pharmacy technician certified by the board is subject to the jurisdiction of the board and to discipline by the board for engaging in unprofessional conduct. The act maintains the limitation on the number of interns and pharmacy technicians that a pharmacist may supervise but specifies that if the pharmacist is supervising 3 or more pharmacy technicians, a majority of the pharmacy technicians must be certified and all others must hold a provisional certification. The regulation of pharmacy technicians by the board is subject to the same sunset review that applies to the board and its functions in regulating the practice of pharmacy. $183,063 is appropriated from the division of professions and occupations cash fund to the department of regulatory agencies (DORA) to implement the act, of which $15,545 is reappropriated to the department of law for legal services for DORA. Additionally, $128,188 is appropriated from the Colorado bureau of investigation identification unit fund to the department of public safety for use by the biometric identification and records unit to perform criminal history record checks. Specified provisions of the act are contingent upon House Bill 19-1172 becoming law. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Health care cost analysis task force - creation - analysis of health care financing systems - report - gifts, grants, and donations - repeal - appropriation. The act creates the health care cost analysis task force (task force). The president of the senate, the minority leader of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the minority leader of the house of representatives shall each appoint one legislative member to the task force. The governor shall appoint 4 members to the task force. The executive directors of the departments of human services, public health and environment, and health care policy and financing, or their designees, also serve on the task force. The task force is required to issue a competitive solicitation in order to select an analyst to provide a detailed analysis of fiscal costs and other impacts to 3 health care financing systems. The health care financing systems to be analyzed are: The current health care financing system, in which residents receive health care coverage from private and public insurance carriers or are uninsured; A multi-payer universal health care system, in which all residents of Colorado are covered under a plan with a mandated set of benefits that is publicly funded and paid for by employer and employee contributions; and A publicly financed and privately delivered universal health care system that directly compensates providers. The analyst may use the same specified criteria when conducting the analysis of each health care financing system. The task force is required to report the findings of the analyst to the general assembly. The task force may seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, and donations for the analysis. The general assembly may appropriate money to the health care cost analysis cash fund for the purposes of the task force, the analysis, and reporting requirements. The act appropriates $92,649 to the department of health care policy and financing from the general fund to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Income tax - credit - innovative motor vehicles. The act modifies the amounts of and extends the number of available years of the existing income tax credits for the purchase or lease of an electric motor vehicle, a plug-in hybrid electric motor vehicle, and an original equipment manufacturer electric truck and plug-in hybrid electric truck.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Medical marijuana program - physician relationship - primary caregiver relationship - dentist or advanced practice practitioner make recommendations - card validity length - health effects panel conflict disclosures - sunset - appropriation. In a bona fide physician-patient relationship for purposes of a medical marijuana recommendation, the act clarifies that if the patient is a child, as part of the relationship the physician must consult with the patient's parents. The act clarifies that a parent can be a primary caregiver for a child with a disabling medical condition. The act clarifies that a primary caregiver for a person with a debilitating or disabling medical condition receives the same confidentiality protections as other primary caregivers. The act clarifies that if a person with a medical marijuana card is convicted of a drug crime, the card is subject to revocation. The act allows a dentist or advanced practice practitioner with prescriptive authority acting within the scope of his or her practice to make medical marijuana recommendations for a disabling medical condition. The act gives the state health agency the authority to promulgate rules regarding the length of time that a medical marijuana card for a disabling medical condition is valid. Under current law there is a health care panel (panel) that monitors the health effects of marijuana and provides a report every two years. The act requires the panel to include individuals with expertise in neuroscience, epidemiology, toxicology, cannabis physiology, and cannabis quality control. The act requires the panelists to disclose all financial interests related to the health care industry and the regulated marijuana industry and report those disclosures in the panel's report. The act gives the department of public health and environment the authority to collect Colorado-specific data that involves health outcomes associated with cannabis from all-payer claims data, hospital discharge data, and available peer-reviewed research studies. The act extends the medical marijuana program until September 1, 2028, and requires a sunset review prior to the repeal. The act makes other technical changes and repeals obsolete provisions. The act appropriates $114,007 to the department of public health and environment from the medical marijuana program cash fund, of which $100,000 is for operating expenses for the registry and $14,007 is for personal services. The act appropriates $560,143 to the department of regulatory agencies from the division of professions and occupations cash fund of which $535,456 is for legal services and $24,687 is for personal services. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More