Utah Senate advances wide package of measures on naloxone access, opioid prescribing, charters and developmental-center dental funding

The Utah Senate convened for a floor session and moved a broad set of bills forward, voting to advance multiple House and Senate measures to the third-reading calendar and approving several on final passage.

Among the measures the chamber advanced, senators voted to send First Substitute House Bill 66 back for third reading after sponsors clarified the measure expands naloxone access and explicitly includes pharmacists and pharmacies in the set of overdose-outreach providers and liability protections. Sponsor Senator Shiozawa and others cited thousands of naloxone overdose reversals statewide and said the bill corrects technical language to reflect practice and the Department of Health’s standing order that enables pharmacist provision.

The Senate also advanced First Substitute House Bill 146, which aligns Utah law with federal changes to permit partial fills of Schedule II controlled-substance prescriptions. Sponsor Senator Vickers said the change is patient-directed, allows a partial fill within 30 days of the prescription date and is intended to reduce the quantity of opioids entering homes. Senators asked about pharmacy benefit managers and copayment impacts; sponsors said insurers and PBMs retain control of copay policy and that Medicaid first-fill limits (a seven-day maximum for the first fill in some Medicaid situations) remain in place.

Senators approved technical and policy bills across other areas. First Substitute House Bill 37 (State Construction Code Amendments) clarifies when geotechnical reports negate drainage-system requirements, removes an arc-fault protector requirement (while keeping GFI protection), and addresses radon-language cleanup. House Bill 53 was approved to designate August 26 as “Rachel Runyon Missing and Exploited Children’s Day” after members debated whether to add more commemorative days. A series of other House bills (including HB43, HB96, HB150, HB170 and HB166) were readied for third reading or were passed with roll-call tallies announced on the floor.

On the Senate side, sponsors urged action on Medicaid- and social-service–focused bills. Senator Yamamoto asked the chamber to uncircle Senate Bill 88 to create a Medicaid housing coordinator aimed at identifying community housing options that can help keep eligible individuals out of more expensive long-term care facilities; proponents argued a statewide coordinator could reduce expenditures by diverting some people from assisted living to less costly housing. Senator Dayton presented Senate Bill 123 to provide ongoing funding (listed in debate as about $650,000) to sustain the State Developmental Center’s dental clinic that serves people with disabilities across the state; sponsors said ongoing funding is needed to recruit and retain a dentist and supporting staff.

The Senate also handled a range of technical, administrative and policy items: substitutes and clarifying amendments were offered for bills on collection-process garnishment rules (SB126), water-company shareholder provisions (first substitute SB63), temporary licensure reciprocity for psychologists through an interstate compact (SB106), and expansion of the state definition of FDA-approved epinephrine auto-injectors to include devices beyond the single-brand EpiPen (SB108) to encourage competition and lower cost.

Where recorded on the floor, the clerk announced vote tallies. Examples include HB43 (reported 28 yay, 0 nay), First Substitute HB66 (28 yay, 0 nay, 1 absent), First Substitute HB37 (27 yay, 0 nay, 2 absent), HB53 (25 yay, 2 nay, 2 absent), First Substitute HB166 (28 yay, 0 nay, 1 absent), and HB96 (26 yay, 0 nay, 3 absent). Several other bills were advanced by voice or roll-call votes during the session.

Senators raised procedural and policy questions throughout—on funding thresholds for tabling items under third reading, on whether charter-school neighborhood preference language would draw students from district schools or only apply when district schools are at capacity, and on insurance and PBM implications for the partial-fill policy. Sponsors repeatedly emphasized that some changes are technical clarifications (bringing state statute into alignment with federal law or correcting terminology) while others are intended to expand access or address budget and service-delivery gaps.

The floor session concluded after brief announcements and the Senate adjourned until 10 a.m. the following day.