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Missouri Senate Advances Prescription Drug Monitoring Bill

In Jefferson City, Mo., Senate Republicans have scuttled Gov. Jay Nixon's nominee to direct the Missouri Department of Economic Development.
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In Jefferson City, Mo., Senate Republicans have scuttled Gov. Jay Nixon's nominee to direct the Missouri Department of Economic Development.

The Missouri Senate has given initial approval for legislation establishing a prescription drug monitoring program.

Senators on Wednesday voted 20-13 to create a database that tracks when prescriptions for controlled substances are written and filed. The goal of such programs is to prevent people from going to multiple doctors to get prescriptions for drugs such as painkillers — sometimes known as "doctor shopping."

Missouri is the only state that doesn't have such a system.

The bill was proposed by longtime prescription monitoring critic Sen. Rob Schaaf, who has cited privacy concerns in the past. Schaaf's proposal includes security protections such as encrypted data and a 180-day time limit for keeping prescription information.

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