2008-06-11                     Senate Journal                      Page 3053
SB 196                                                                                                                        
President Green submitted the following letter, dated June 10, for                                                              
publication:                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Dear Governor Palin,                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
I am concerned by the context of your transmittal letter regarding your                                                         
concerns for not signing Senate Bill 196 into law. In the first                                                                 
paragraph you state "A major goal of the bill is laudable - curbing                                                             
prescription drug abuse through a proactive approach of reviewing a                                                             
patient's prescription history before dispensing certain controlled                                                             
substances." And in the third paragraph "...personal information about                                                          
the drugs prescribed to that person appears in a database accessible                                                            
throughout the state."                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
I want to ease your concerns about the amount of prescription                                                                   
information that is captured in this database. Only schedule I-V                                                                
prescriptions are collected; this is only 10-15% of all prescriptions                                                           
dispensed. Schedule I-V prescriptions are those that are determined by                                                          

2008-06-11                     Senate Journal                      Page 3054
the federal Drug Enforcement Administration to have potential for                                                               
abuse and that the abuse may lead to physical dependence or                                                                     
psychological dependence. Most Alaskans will never have their                                                                   
information recorded in the database.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Many of us share your concern for privacy of personal information.                                                              
Senate Bill 196 requires security measures and identifies the criminal                                                          
charges for any breach of information. A report to the legislature on                                                           
how data security will be insured is required at the beginning of the                                                           
next legislative session. The legislature can decide whether or not to                                                          
amend the law to make the data more secure before the database "goes                                                            
live" to our medical community. Alaska's prescription drug monitoring                                                           
program contains personal privacy measures that are stricter than or                                                            
equal to the other 40 United States with similar programs already in                                                            
place.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
I appreciate the positive feedback I've received from many of the                                                               
professionals in your administration who are eager to implement                                                                 
Alaska's prescription drug monitoring program to start down the long                                                            
road of stopping prescription drug abuse in Alaska.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
Sincerely,                                                                                                                      
/s/                                                                                                                             
Lyda Green