Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and legislative leaders announced Tues., June 5, an agreement has been reached on new legislation to establish tighter oversight over the sale of prescription drugs. The new law will include a series of provisions to overhaul the way prescription drugs are distributed and tracked statewide, including enacting a “real time” prescription monitoring registry to provide timely and enhanced information to practitioners and pharmacists; requiring all prescriptions to be electronically transmitted; improving safeguards for the distribution of specific prescription drugs prone to abuse; requiring the Department of Health to establish a safe disposal program for unused medications; and the continuing development of medical education courses and other public awareness measures regarding pain management and prescription drugs. Read the statement released by the Governor's Office.