It didn't take Ohio's Board of Pharmacy to implement Governor Kasich's desire to cut down on opioid prescriptions. New rules were approved a week after Kasich announced efforts by the regulatory boards overseeing doctors, nurses, dentists and pharmacists to use "commonsense" limits on using opioids to treat acute pain. Supporters hope to cut the number of doses in Ohio by more than 100 million annually.

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(Ohio Pharmacy Board) The State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy announced the approval of rules to help implement proposed limits on opiate prescriptions for acute pain. Announced by Governor Kasich and leaders of Ohio's healthcare regulatory boards last Thursday, the rules will support efforts by the Medical, Nursing and Dental Boards to place commonsense limits on the use of opiates for the treatment of acute pain.

"The Board is proud to play its role in helping to reduce opiate prescribing in Ohio" said Steven Schierholt, Executive Director of the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy. "It is estimated that the state could see an annual reduction of 109 million opiate doses once the new limits are in effect."

The rules adopted by the Board will require prescribers to include a diagnosis or procedure code on every controlled substance prescription. This information will then be entered into Ohio's prescription monitoring program, known as the Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS), by dispensing pharmacies to monitor compliance with the limits.

The rules will follow the Board's standard rule adoption process, including input from stakeholders and the public.