1. This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Improved Access to Treatment for Opioid Addictions Act” or “IATOA Act”.

2. As used in this section, the following terms mean:

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(1) “Department”, the department of mental health;

(2) “IATOA program”, the improved access to treatment for opioid addictions program created under subsection 3 of this section.

3. Subject to appropriations, the department shall create and oversee an “Improved Access to Treatment for Opioid Addictions Program”, which is hereby created and whose purpose is to disseminate information and best practices regarding opioid addiction and to facilitate collaborations to better treat and prevent opioid addiction in this state. The IATOA program shall facilitate partnerships between assistant physicians, physician assistants, and advanced practice registered nurses practicing in federally qualified health centers, rural health clinics, and other health care facilities and physicians practicing at remote facilities located in this state. The IATOA program shall provide resources that grant patients and their treating assistant physicians, physician assistants, advanced practice registered nurses, or physicians access to knowledge and expertise through means such as telemedicine and Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) programs established under section 191.1140.

4. Assistant physicians, physician assistants, and advanced practice registered nurses who participate in the IATOA program shall complete the necessary requirements to prescribe buprenorphine within at least thirty days of joining the IATOA program.

5. For the purposes of the IATOA program, a remote collaborating physician working with an on-site assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse shall be considered to be on-site. An assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse collaborating with a remote physician shall comply with all laws and requirements applicable to assistant physicians, physician assistants, or advanced practice registered nurses with on-site supervision before providing treatment to a patient.

6. An assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse collaborating with a physician who is waiver-certified for the use of buprenorphine may participate in the IATOA program in any area of the state and provide all services and functions of an assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse.

7. The department may develop curriculum and benchmark examinations on the subject of opioid addiction and treatment. The department may collaborate with specialists, institutions of higher education, and medical schools for such development. Completion of such a curriculum and passing of such an examination by an assistant physician, physician assistant, advanced practice registered nurse, or physician shall result in a certificate awarded by the department or sponsoring institution, if any.

8. An assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse participating in the IATOA program may also:

(1) Engage in community education;

(2) Engage in professional education outreach programs with local treatment providers;

(3) Serve as a liaison to courts;

(4) Serve as a liaison to addiction support organizations;

(5) Provide educational outreach to schools;

(6) Treat physical ailments of patients in an addiction treatment program or considering entering such a program;

(7) Refer patients to treatment centers;

(8) Assist patients with court and social service obligations;

(9) Perform other functions as authorized by the department; and

(10) Provide mental health services in collaboration with a qualified licensed physician.

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The list of authorizations in this subsection is a nonexclusive list, and assistant physicians, physician assistants, or advanced practice registered nurses participating in the IATOA program may perform other actions.

9. When an overdose survivor arrives in the emergency department, the assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse serving as a recovery coach or, if the assistant physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse is unavailable, another properly trained recovery coach shall, when reasonably practicable, meet with the overdose survivor and provide treatment options and support available to the overdose survivor. The department shall assist recovery coaches in providing treatment options and support to overdose survivors.

10. The provisions of this section shall supersede any contradictory statutes, rules, or regulations. The department shall implement the improved access to treatment for opioid addictions program as soon as reasonably possible using guidance within this section. Further refinement to the improved access to treatment for opioid addictions program may be done through the rules process.

11. The department shall promulgate rules to implement the provisions of the improved access to treatment for opioid addictions act as soon as reasonably possible. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is created under the authority delegated in this section shall become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after August 28, 2018, shall be invalid and void.