November 19, 2021 - Introduced by Senators Smith, Agard, Johnson, Larson and
L. Taylor, cosponsored by Representatives Vining, Spreitzer, Andraca,
Bowen, Cabrera, Emerson, Goyke, Hebl, Hesselbein, Hong, Ohnstad, Pope,
Shankland, Shelton, Sinicki, Snodgrass, Stubbs, Subeck, Tusler and
Vruwink. Referred to Committee on Health.

SB706,1,5 1An Act to amend 450.13 (title); and to create 20.435 (1) (ck), 256.158 and 450.13
2(5n) of the statutes; relating to: epinephrine for ambulances; therapeutic
3interchange for drug products prescribed to counteract anaphylaxis; funding
4for special education, the University of Wisconsin System, and the technical
5college system; and making an appropriation.

This bill requires that the Department of Health Services reimburse
ambulance service providers for a set of two epinephrine auto-injectors or a set of two
draw-up epinephrine kits for each ambulance operating in the state. Under the bill,
an ambulance service provider means an ambulance service provider that is a public
agency, volunteer fire department, or nonprofit corporation. The bill also requires
that, on an ongoing basis, DHS must, upon request, reimburse ambulance service
providers for replacement sets of epinephrine auto-injectors or draw-up
epinephrine kits. DHS may only reimburse ambulance service providers for
epinephrine if each ambulance for which the ambulance service provider is
reimbursed is staffed with an emergency medical service provider who is qualified
to administer the epinephrine. The bill provides additional funding to the
Department of Public Instruction for aids for special education and to the University
of Wisconsin System and technical college system for purposes of maintaining
compliance with maintenance of effort requirements of the federal Consolidated
Appropriations Act and the federal American Rescue Plan Act.

Also, for drug products prescribed to counteract anaphylaxis, this bill allows,
if certain conditions are met, a pharmacist to substitute a drug product with another
drug product that would, in the opinion of the pharmacist, have a substantially
equivalent therapeutic effect even though the substitute drug product is not a drug
product equivalent. The bill also provides that a pharmacist who dispenses a drug
product for a patient in a hospital may, for a drug product prescribed to counteract
anaphylaxis, under the same conditions applicable for drug product equivalents
under current law, substitute a drug product with another drug product that would,
in the opinion of the pharmacist, have a substantially equivalent therapeutic effect
even though the substitute drug product is not a drug product equivalent. Current
law defines a “drug product equivalent” as a drug product that is designated the
therapeutic equivalent of another drug product by the federal Food and Drug
Administration as set forth in the latest edition of the supplement to the federal Food
and Drug Administration's Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence
Evaluations, commonly known as the Orange Book. As with substitution of drug
product equivalents under current law, the therapeutic substitutions allowed under
the bill do not apply to biological products.