Medical Waste Amendments
HB 97, titled "Medical Waste Amendments" (though it addresses medication distribution, not waste), requires health facilities like hospitals, urgent care centers, and surgical facilities to offer unused portions of specific medications to patients upon discharge if continued treatment is needed. The bill covers topical antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, dilation drops, or glaucoma treatments provided during procedures or visits. It mandates that these medications be labeled per pharmacy laws and requires prescribers to counsel patients on proper use, while exempting them from standard pharmacy counseling rules. This applies directly to patients receiving facility-provided medications during care, effective May 6, 2026.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Feb 2026
Signed into Law
Mar 2026
Introduced Jan 20, 2026
Signed Mar 17, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 5 comparisons
What changed between versions
Substitute #1
→
Substitute #2
·
2 edits
MINOR
The bill text was reformatted to correct a Senate sponsor name and remove conflicting legislative history markers. The core policy content regarding the distribution of unused facility-provided medications, labeling requirements, and counseling rules remains substantively unchanged.
Scope change
The bill's scope and applicability remain the same; no new facilities, medications, or procedures were added or removed.
TECHNICAL
Corrected the Senate Sponsor name from 'LONG TITLE' to 'Evan J. Vickers' and removed redundant legislative history markers.
Reformatted the document to remove conflicting line numbers and markup symbols from the previous version.
Floor votes · Senate Feb 26, 2026 · House Feb 10, 2026
How they voted
20–0
Passed · 9 other
Total votes 29
Feb 26, 2026
D
Democratic6
100% Yea
N
Forward1
100% Yea
R
Republican22
59% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
48
Key actions
10
Committee
7
Amendments
1
Mar 17, 2026
Signed into law
Governor Signed
executive
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
House/ signed by Speaker/ sent for enrolling
lower
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
Senate/ signed by President/ returned to House
lower
Feb 26, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate/ passed 3rd reading
upper
Feb 20, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate/ committee report favorable [Senate Health and Human Services Committee]
upper
Feb 19, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation [Senate Health and Human Services Committee]
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Upper · Passed
Senate Comm - Not Considered [Senate Health and Human Services Committee]
upper
Feb 13, 2026
Committee
Senate/ to standing committee [Senate Health and Human Services Committee]
upper
Feb 12, 2026
Introduced
Senate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
upper
Feb 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
House/ passed 3rd reading
upper
Feb 10, 2026
Introduced
House/ floor amendment
lower
Feb 2, 2026
Lower · Passed
House/ comm rpt/ substituted [House Health and Human Services Committee]
lower
Jan 30, 2026
Lower · Passed
House Comm - Favorable Recommendation [House Health and Human Services Committee]
lower
Jan 21, 2026
Committee
House/ to standing committee [House Health and Human Services Committee]
lower
Jan 20, 2026
Introduced
House/ 1st reading (Introduced)
lower
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor
Sponsors
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