Rep. Saint Germain seeks to cut Michigan lag on implementing federal drug scheduling changes
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Summary
Representative Saint Germain introduced a bill to shorten Michigan’s statutory delay for the Board of Pharmacy to mirror federal DEA scheduling changes, arguing the current 91‑day lag denies timely patient access to federally approved treatments.
Representative Saint Germain presented House Bill 5162 to the House Health Policy Committee, arguing Michigan’s current 91‑day statutory lag for the State Board of Pharmacy to reflect federal DEA scheduling changes imposes an unnecessary delay on patients gaining access to federally approved controlled‑substance therapies.
"Waiting for a breakthrough medication can be a matter of life and death," Saint Germain said, noting other Midwestern states allow faster implementation and that Michigan is an outlier with a 91‑day window. Committee members asked whether a shorter window (for example, 30 days) would allow the Board of Pharmacy sufficient time to schedule meetings and process changes; Saint Germain said the board meets multiple times per year and staff receive advance notice of impending federal actions.
Committee members requested follow‑up data about how often Michigan’s lag has delayed patient access and whether other states’ timelines produced different patient outcomes. Saint Germain said the DEA issued 26 scheduling actions in the past year and said the bill seeks to bring Michigan timelines more in line with neighboring states.
No committee vote on HB 5162 occurred at this meeting; Saint Germain said he would provide additional data in follow‑up for the committee's consideration.
