Permits individuals to establish voluntary nonopioid directives.

A2290

ASSEMBLY, No. 2290

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman MARGIE DONLON, M.D.

District 11 (Monmouth)

Assemblyman CLINTON CALABRESE

District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)

Assemblywoman SHAMA A. HAIDER

District 37 (Bergen)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Verrelli, Assemblywomen Peterpaul, Murphy,
Speight, Bagolie, Assemblyman Freiman, Assemblywoman Drulis, Assemblyman Moen,
Assemblywoman Swain and Assemblyman Tully

SYNOPSIS

���� Permits individuals to establish voluntary nonopioid
directives.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning
voluntary nonopioid directives and
supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.� As used in this act:

���� �Authorized representative�
means a parent or legal guardian of a minor, an individual's guardian, or other
person appointed by the individual or court to manage the individual's health
care.

���� "Health care facility"
means a physician's office, or an acute care general hospital or any other
health care facility licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).

���� "Health care
professional" means a person licensed or certified to practice a health
care profession pursuant to Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.

���� b.��� An individual who is 18
years of age or older, an emancipated minor, or a patient�s authorized
representative may execute a voluntary nonopioid directive stating that an
opioid may not be administered or prescribed to the individual.�

���� c.���� A voluntary nonopioid
directive shall be made on a form that shall be developed by the Department of
Health and published on the department�s Internet website.�

���� d.��� A voluntary nonopioid
directive may be revoked at any time either orally or in writing by an
individual or the individual�s authorized representative.

���� e.���� The Department of
Health shall publicize information about voluntary nonopioid directives through
various means, including social media.

���� f.���� A voluntary nonopioid
directive submitted by a patient or the patient�s authorized representative to
a health care professional or to a health care facility shall be entered into
the patient�s electronic file in a manner that permits the patient or the patient�s
authorized representative to access the directive.

���� g.��� Nothing in this act
shall prevent an opioid from being prescribed or administered to a patient if
deemed medically necessary.

���� h. (1) A health care
professional, a health care facility, or an employee of a health care
professional or health care facility shall be immune from disciplinary action
by the Department of Health or a licensing agency or board for any act that was
done to comply with the provisions of this act.

���� (2) A health care
professional, a health care facility, or an employee of a health care
professional or health care facility shall be immune from any civil or criminal
liability for failure to administer, prescribe, or dispense an opioid, and for the
intentional or inadvertent administration of an opioid, to an individual who
has a voluntary nonopioid directive, if the act or the failure was reasonable
and done in good faith.

���� 2.��� The Commissioner of
Health shall adopt rules and regulations, in accordance with the
�Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as are
necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act.

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

����� This bill
permits individuals to establish
voluntary nonopioid directives.

���� Under the bill, an individual
who is 18 years of age or older, an emancipated minor, or a patient�s
authorized representative, as this term is defined in the bill, may execute a
voluntary nonopioid directive stating that an opioid may not be administered or
prescribed to the individual.�

���� A voluntary nonopioid
directive is to be made on a form that is to be developed by the Department of
Health and published on the department�s Internet website.� Nothing in the bill
is to prevent an opioid from being administered or prescribed to a patient if
deemed medically necessary.�

���� A health care professional, a
health care facility, or an employee of a health care professional or health
care facility is to be immune from disciplinary action by the Department of
Health or a licensing agency or board for any act that was done to comply with
the bill�s provisions.� Further, a health care professional, a health care
facility, or an employee of a health care professional or health care facility
is to be immune from any civil or criminal liability for failure to administer,
prescribe, or dispense an opioid, and for the intentional or inadvertent
administration of an opioid, to an individual who has a voluntary nonopioid
directive, if the act or the failure was reasonable and done in good faith.