In The States – Page 378 – Weekly news about states

Louisiana

Effective January 16, the Department of Health renewed a standing order for naloxone allowing participating pharmacists to dispense naloxone to laypeople including caregivers and family and friends of an opioid user.

Also in Louisiana…Effective January 1, 2018, the final rule of the Department of Health, Board of Pharmacy, amended regulations under LAC 46.LIII, Chapter 9 to require pharmacy technician candidates to demonstrate proof of enrollment in a training program to qualify for the candidate registration was adopted. The rule also requires the training program selected by the candidate to be accredited by a national accreditation organization approved by the board. In addition, the rule requires applicants to demonstrate successful completion of a nationally accredited training program and makes technical changes regarding continuing education records and the scope of practice. Finally, the rule allows for additional board-approved technician certification examinations, clarifies terminations of enrollment, deletes a notification requirement for training programs and revises practical experience requirements for candidates enrolled in training programs.

Michael Silber2018-03-13T16:32:28-04:00January 18, 2018|Louisiana|

Idaho

The state legislature unanimously approved the Board of Pharmacy’s rule re-write eliminating over half the Pharmacy Practice Act word count, almost three quarters of the restrictions on practice, and reducing the Act to just six categories of licensure.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Sandra Guckian at 703-774-4801.

Michael Silber2018-03-13T16:30:44-04:00January 18, 2018|Idaho|

Oklahoma

In a letter to Speaker of the House of Representatives Charles McCall (R), a growing coalition of stakeholders urged support for legislation that would mandate e-prescribing. The letter also refutes several erroneous claims made recently by the President of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

Michael Silber2018-02-14T21:01:44-05:00January 18, 2018|Oklahoma|

Texas

Beginning January 9, the Health and Human Services Commission limited the daily morphine equivalent dose (MED) that people enrolled in Medicaid fee-for-service may receive to 300 MED, and will be applied to all opioid prescriptions for all clients, with exceptions for people diagnosed with cancer or those receiving palliative or hospice care.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

Michael Silber2018-02-14T20:58:25-05:00January 18, 2018|Texas|

California

The Board of Pharmacy, University of California, San Francisco School of Pharmacy and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration are hosting an educational forum on Saturday, January 27 in San Francisco to train pharmacists on drug diversion trends, pharmacy burglaries, prescription drug abuse and overdose prevention. Pharmacists will receive six hours of continuing education credit for attending the day-long event, plus an additional hour can be earned at the end of the day to meet the requirements of the pharmacist protocol to provide naloxone. Space is limited, and preregistration is strongly encouraged. To register, email your full name and license number to registration@dca.ca.gov.

Also in California…The Board of Pharmacy has added an additional Public Board Meeting on Thursday, January 11 and published a Notice of Meeting Agenda.

Also in California…In a letter sent in December, NACDS, in partnership with the California Retailers Association and the California Pharmacists Association, continues to press the Department of Health Care Services to implement Assembly Bill 1114 (2016, Eggman) to pay pharmacists for providing certain healthcare services.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:23:06-05:00January 4, 2018|California|

Colorado

In January 22, the Board of Pharmacy will be seeking stakeholder input on the following proposed draft rules to regulate the practice of pharmacy.

Rule 5.01.40 and 5.01.50—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address the minimum hourly operations and security requirements for a pharmacy when a pharmacy does not possess prescription drug or controlled substance stocks.
Rule 6.00.00—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address drug therapy management and how this practice may correlate with collaborative pharmacy practice.
Rule 17.00.00 and Appendix A—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address collaborative pharmacy practice and how this practice may correlate with drug therapy management.
Rule 20.00.00—The purpose of the proposed amendments is to allow a fulfillment pharmacy to deliver a prescription directly to the patient in lieu of returning the filled prescription to the originating pharmacy for dispensing to the patient of non-controlled substances.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:30:12-05:00January 4, 2018|Colorado|

Connecticut

NACDS and the Connecticut Association of Community Pharmacy met with Rodrick Marriott, Director, Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, Drug Control Division, to discuss the January 1, 2018 launch of mandatory e-prescribing for controlled substances Schedules II through V prescriptions. Subsequently, the Drug Control Division published an FAQ that included a statement noting that “a pharmacist is NOT required to verify that a prescriber has a waiver from the requirement to electronically prescribe, or properly falls under one of the other exceptions from the requirement to electronically prescribe. Pharmacists may continue to dispense medications from otherwise valid written, oral, or fax prescriptions that are consistent with current laws and regulations.”

For more information, please contact NACDS’ Ben Pearlman at 617-515-2603.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:29:18-05:00January 4, 2018|Connecticut|

Illinois

Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) signed into law SB 772, effective January 1, 2018, requiring prescribers to register with the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) and, with certain exceptions, to document their check of the PMP before prescribing Schedule II controlled substances.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Joel Kurzman at 847-905-0555.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:28:28-05:00January 4, 2018|Illinois|

Michigan

Lt. Gov. Brian Calley (R) signed into law a package of legislation intended to address the opioid epidemic and several bills of which directly pertain to pharmacy. SB 166requires prescribers by Friday, June 1, 2018 to register with the Prescription Monitoring Program and, with certain exceptions, to obtain reports for controlled substance prescriptions of greater than a three-day supply. SB 274 allows pharmacists in certain circumstances to partially fill a controlled substances prescription and prohibits prescribers from prescribing more than a seven-day supply in a seven-day period when treating a patient for acute pain.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Joel Kurzman at 847-905-0555.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:27:48-05:00January 4, 2018|Michigan|