Vicky Cornell’s lawsuit against Dr. Robert Koblin and his staff over the death of her late husband Chris Cornell alleges that California Health & Safety Code section 11190, California Health & Safety Code section 11200, and California Business & Professions Code section 2242 were all violated. Vicky Cornell believes that Dr. Koblin irresponsibly prescribing Chris the prescription drug Ativan contributed to his May 2017 death, which was ruled as a suicide by hanging by the medical examiner.
“The defendants’ acts of negligence also include, but are not limited to, violations of California Health & Safety Code sections 11190 and section 112000, and California Business & Professions Code section 2242. These statues restrict and govern prescribing and ordering refills of Schedule II, III, and IV controlled substances such as those set forth above. Each of these statues was intended to prevent harm to patients. Chris Cornell and the plaintiffs were in the class of persons for whose protection the Legislature enacted these statues. Chris Cornell’s death was an occurrence that the statues were designed to prevent.
“The defendants’ acts of negligence also include, but are not limited to, violations of California Health & Professions Code section 2242. These statues restrict and govern prescribing and ordering refills of Schedule II, III, and IV controlled substances such as those set forth above. Each of these statues was intended to prevent harm to patients. Chris Cornell and the plaintiffs were in the class of persons for whose protection the Legislature enacted these statutes. Chris Cornell’s death was an occurrence that these statutes were designed to prevent.”
Below are descriptions of each code.
ARTICLE 2. Prescriber’s Record [11190 – 11192] ( Article 2 added by Stats. 1972, Ch. 1407. )
11190.
(a) Every practitioner, other than a pharmacist, who prescribes or administers a controlled substance classified in Schedule II shall make a record that, as to the transaction, shows all of the following:
(1) The name and address of the patient.
(2) The date.
(3) The character, including the name and strength, and quantity of controlled substances involved.
(b) The prescriber’s record shall show the pathology and purpose for which the controlled substance was administered or prescribed.
(c) (1) For each prescription for a Schedule II, Schedule III, or Schedule IV controlled substance that is dispensed by a prescriber pursuant to Section 4170 of the Business and Professions Code, the prescriber shall record and maintain the following information:
(A) Full name, address, and the telephone number of the ultimate user or research subject, or contact information as determined by the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and the gender, and date of birth of the patient.
(B) The prescriber’s category of licensure and license number; federal controlled substance registration number; and the state medical license number of any prescriber using the federal controlled substance registration number of a government-exempt facility.
(C) NDC (National Drug Code) number of the controlled substance dispensed.
(D) Quantity of the controlled substance dispensed.
(E) ICD-9 (diagnosis code), if available.
(F) Number of refills ordered.
(G) Whether the drug was dispensed as a refill of a prescription or as a first-time request.
(H) Date of origin of the prescription.
(2) (A) Each prescriber that dispenses controlled substances shall provide the Department of Justice the information required by this subdivision on a weekly basis in a format set by the Department of Justice pursuant to regulation.
(B) The reporting requirement in this section shall not apply to the direct administration of a controlled substance to the body of an ultimate user.
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2005.
(e) The reporting requirement in this section for Schedule IV controlled substances shall not apply to any of the following:
(1) The dispensing of a controlled substance in a quantity limited to an amount adequate to treat the ultimate user involved for 48 hours or less.
(2) The administration or dispensing of a controlled substance in accordance with any other exclusion identified by the United States Health and Human Service Secretary for the National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting Act of 2005.
(f) Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of subdivision (c), the reporting requirement of the information required by this section for a Schedule II or Schedule III controlled substance, in a format set by the Department of Justice pursuant to regulation, shall be on a monthly basis for all of the following:
(1) The dispensing of a controlled substance in a quantity limited to an amount adequate to treat the ultimate user involved for 48 hours or less.
(2) The administration or dispensing of a controlled substance in accordance with any other exclusion identified by the United States Health and Human Service Secretary for the National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting Act of 2005.
ARTICLE 4. Refilling Prescriptions [11200 – 11201] ( Article 4 added by Stats. 1972, Ch. 1407. )
11200.
(a) No person shall dispense or refill a controlled substance prescription more than six months after the date thereof.
(b) No prescription for a Schedule III or IV substance may be refilled more than five times and in an amount, for all refills of that prescription taken together, exceeding a 120-day supply.
(c) No prescription for a Schedule II substance may be refilled.
ARTICLE 12. Enforcement [2220 – 2319] ( Article 12 added by Stats. 1980, Ch. 1313, Sec. 2. )
2242.
(a) Prescribing, dispensing, or furnishing dangerous drugs as defined in Section 4022 without an appropriate prior examination and a medical indication, constitutes unprofessional conduct.
(b) No licensee shall be found to have committed unprofessional conduct within the meaning of this section if, at the time the drugs were prescribed, dispensed, or furnished, any of the following applies:
(1) The licensee was a designated physician and surgeon or podiatrist serving in the absence of the patient’s physician and surgeon or podiatrist, as the case may be, and if the drugs were prescribed, dispensed, or furnished only as necessary to maintain the patient until the return of his or her practitioner, but in any case no longer than 72 hours.
(2) The licensee transmitted the order for the drugs to a registered nurse or to a licensed vocational nurse in an inpatient facility, and if both of the following conditions exist:
(A) The practitioner had consulted with the registered nurse or licensed vocational nurse who had reviewed the patient’s records.
(B) The practitioner was designated as the practitioner to serve in the absence of the patient’s physician and surgeon or podiatrist, as the case may be.
(3) The licensee was a designated practitioner serving in the absence of the patient’s physician and surgeon or podiatrist, as the case may be, and was in possession of or had utilized the patient’s records and ordered the renewal of a medically indicated prescription for an amount not exceeding the original prescription in strength or amount or for more than one refill.
(4) The licensee was acting in accordance with Section 120582 of the Health and Safety Code.
