Evidence status: CURRENT AUTHORITY MAP. This page identifies the public institutions and formal administrative route connected to Rhode Island’s written patient treatment agreement requirement. It is an authority record, not a claim that any single office can act outside Rhode Island’s rulemaking procedures.

Controlling agency

The Rhode Island Department of Health is the agency responsible for the active regulation titled Pain Management, Opioid Use and the Registration of Distributors of Controlled Substances in Rhode Island, codified at 216-RICR-20-20-4.

Current Director of Health

Jerome Larkin, MD is the current Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health. RIDOH’s current About page identifies him in that office.

Why the Department matters

Rhode Island’s 2026 controlled-substances legislation repeatedly assigns rulemaking authority concerning opioid use and pain management to the Director of Health. Section 21-28-3.20.1, as amended by 2026 Public Law Chapter 314, requires covered practitioners to enter into written patient treatment agreements in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Department of Health.

The formal petition route

Rhode Island General Laws §42-35-6 states that any person may petition an agency to promulgate a rule. The agency must prescribe the form and procedure for petitions. Within 30 days after submission, the agency must either deny the petition in a record and state its reasons or initiate rulemaking.

What a clean administrative record should contain

  • The exact regulatory text proposed for amendment, repeal, or replacement.
  • The current statutory framework, including the June 23, 2026 amendments.
  • The state-issued sample agreement and RIDOH implementation materials.
  • Practice-specific Rhode Island agreements, with dates and source provenance, when available.
  • Evidence distinguishing binding state requirements from discretionary clinic terms.
  • Any agency petition, written response, proposed rule, notice, public comment record, hearing record, and final rule.

Related public bodies

The Rhode Island Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline operates within the state’s professional-licensing structure and is relevant to physician regulation and discipline. RIDOH’s 2025 BMLD annual report identifies the Director of Health as the Board’s chair by office. Rulemaking authority for 216-RICR-20-20-4 should nevertheless be traced to the Department and the governing statutes rather than attributed to an individual board member.

Primary sources

← Rhode Island Contract-for-Care Evidence Library

Reviewed: October 4, 2026.

Evidence boundary: This page maps authority and process. It does not state that a named official has unilateral power to change a regulation outside the procedures required by Rhode Island law.