05/06/2003 01:35 PM Senate L&C

                    HB  51-LABELING OF PRESCRIBED DRUGS                                                                     
                                                                                                                              
     CHAIR BUNDE announced HB 51 to be up for consideration.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
     REPRESENTATIVE PAUL SEATON,  sponsor, said HB 51 is  a health and                                                          
     safety bill that requires the generic  drug name be placed on all                                                          
     brand name  prescription labels. There  have been a lot  of cases                                                          
     of senior  citizens overdosing because they  get one prescription                                                          
     filled with  only the generic  name and another labeled  with the                                                          
     name  brand,  thus  ending  up  with  two  bottles  of  the  same                                                          
     medication from the same doctor that  both say take three times a                                                          
     day. He noted members' packets contain many letters of support.                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     CHAIR  BUNDE  asked what  financial  impact  would this  have  on                                                          
     pharmacies.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     REPRESENTATIVE  SEATON  answered  that  there  would  be  minimal                                                          
     impacts  as most  pharmacies  have software  that  is capable  of                                                          
     doing the  labeling. It would  take realigning the fields  on the                                                          
     computer. The bill specifies that the names be in the same area.                                                           
                                                                                                                                
     CHAIR  BUNDE asked  how citizens  could educate  themselves about                                                          
     the generic name and use it  for comparison purposes. He asked if                                                          
     the pharmacists would point it out to the customer.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     REPRESENTATIVE SEATON said  that right now a consumer  has no way                                                          
     of knowing the  difference between two bottles.  He presumed that                                                          
     pharmacists would do that. He  thought the naming would be pretty                                                          
     obvious. The  Alaska Pharmaceutical  Corporation does  not oppose                                                          
     this bill.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     SENATOR  FRENCH asked  if other  states were  adopting laws  like                                                          
     this one.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
     REPRESENTATIVE SEATON  answered yes  and said it  was recommended                                                          
     by the FDA.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR STEVENS  moved to pass  CSHB 51(HES) from  committee with                                                               
individual  recommendations   and  zero  fiscal   note.  SENATORS                                                               
STEVENS, DAVIS,  FRENCH, SEEKINS  and BUNDE  voted yea;  and CSHB
(HES) moved from committee.