NASHVILLE – A House panel’s action last week to move alternative legislation to Gov. Bill Haslam’s opioid proposal is spurring intense discussions between administration officials and health providers who believe the governor’s proposed prescription limits go too far.
The House Health Subcommittee last Wednesday approved the alternative bill, sponsored by Rep. Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, chairman of the full House Health Committee, despite concerns raised by administration officials during a hearing.
Sexton’s bill seeks to ease some of the prescription limits Haslam’s bill places on physicians, dentists and others who prescribe painkillers to patients.
Haslam and top administration health officials argue the limits are necessary to combat Tennessee’s opioid crisis, but providers believe they are too draconian, allow little leeway for doctors to use their best judgment and interfere with their patient relationships.
The Republican governor’s assistant for strategy and policy director, Jayme Simmons, and Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Reagan, both appeared before the panel.