All medical practitioners must report Kpod cases to CNB, MOH within 7 days

With etomidate listed as a Class C drug from Sept 1, all medical practitioners are legally required to report suspected abusers to the authorities within seven days.

Unlike those who come forward willingly, these abusers can be investigated and prosecuted.

In a circular dated Aug 29, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said this requirement is effective from Sept 1.

Under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations, any medical practitioner who attends to someone suspected of being a drug addict has to report the suspect to the director of medical services and director of the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) within seven days.

The regulations state that they are to provide the suspected offender’s details, including the person’s name, age, address and identity card number.

The report may also include how often that person has been attended to by the medical staff, the prescriptions and the suspect’s physical symptoms.

The circular said suspected etomidate vape offenders are those who turn up with vapes or admit to vaping, and who show symptoms such as unsteady gait, confusion or slurred speech.

Healthcare institutions have been instructed to refer Kpod abusers who come to them for help with their addiction to the QuitVape programme.

But if they are attended to by registered medical practitioners, they will have to be reported to CNB.

Etomidate, which is meant to be used as an anaesthetic agent, was classified as a Class C drug on Sept 1 after it became increasingly abused through vapes.

Such devices, known as Kpods, have been linked to several deaths here.

Singapore has introduced stiffer penalties for suppliers and abusers of Kpods to tackle the scourge.

From Sept 1, those who import Kpods face jail time of up to 20 years and 15 strokes of the cane, while those who sell or distribute Kpods can be jailed for up to 10 years and given five strokes of the cane.

Kpod abusers face a fine of $500 if they are under 18 and $700 if they are above 18 when they are caught the first time. They will also have to attend rehabilitation for up to six months.

If caught a second time, they will undergo mandatory supervision for six months, including drug testing and rehabilitation.

Those caught a third time and beyond will be admitted to a Drug Rehabilitation Centre with drug testing and supervision for 12 months. Those under 16 will not be admitted, but will undergo mandatory supervision for 12 months.

Those who fail to comply can be prosecuted under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

In their circular, MOH and HSA said that when vapes are handed over to hospital staff, the devices should be retained and kept safely with proper documentation.

The staff should then contact HSA immediately for further steps to be taken.

The circular also clarified that medical practitioners are not obligated to conduct urine tests on patients solely to ascertain the presence of etomidate.

But if such a test is done as part of clinical investigations and turns up positive for the drug, the medical practitioners must report the person to CNB and notify HSA.

There is currently only one registered etomidate therapeutic product in Singapore, which is an anaesthetic injection.

MOH and HSA said that as etomidate is now a controlled drug, healthcare institutions that bought it for use are required to step up the handling, storage, documentation and record-keeping of the substance.

Products containing etomidate must be stored securely under lock and key.

In a previous circular on July 9, public healthcare institutions were told to record all suspected and confirmed etomidate-linked vaping cases.

The updated circular on Aug 29 extended this requirement to all medical practitioners. It added that further details on the longer-term legislative measures for Kpods will be provided at a later stage.

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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