Medical boards and regulators urge scope‑of‑practice clarifications for H.32 prescription language

Legislators on the House Corrections and Institutions Committee heard detailed technical testimony on draft bill H.32 on April 9, focusing on language that would govern continuation of community medical care and medication‑for‑opioid‑use‑disorder (MOUD) for people entering correctional facilities.

David Herlihy, executive director of the Vermont Board of Medical Practice, told the committee the draft bill's repeated phrase "licensed to prescribe" is incomplete for controlled substances and MOUD. "Saying someone needs to be licensed to do it is not adequate," Herlihy said. He explained prescribers of controlled substances also require DEA registration and that some licensed professions have restricted scopes — for example, podiatrists and dentists may prescribe for conditions within their fields but not treat opioid use disorder broadly.

Why it matters: committee members and regulators said the bill should ensure that only practitioners who are authorized, qualified and acting within their lawful scopes of practice can initiate or continue prescriptions inside correctional facilities, and that continuity of care requires an actual prescription to be issued before medication may be…