2024 Updates - Current through October 2024

2023 Updates

Alabama

• January 2023: Amended the 680-X-2-.18 Institutional Pharmacies rule to help patients obtain emergency dispensing medications upon discharge. These medications must include specific labeling details for proper storage, handling, safety, and usage.

• February 2023: Amended the Role of Technicians in Pharmacies rule, specifying sufficient ratios of technicians per full-time licensed pharmacist, including certification requirements for technicians by a Board-approved credentialing organization.

California

• March 2023: Clarified regulations on "inventory reconciliation" and defined "inventory activities." The amendment specifies inventory requirements for controlled substances and establishes procedures for inventory documentation and reporting.

• October 2023: Amended regulation clarifying "inventory reconciliation" and "inventory activities," specifying when controlled substances must be inventoried and requirements for documenting and reporting inventories.

District of Columbia

• October 2023: Introduced LinkU DMV, a resource for finding free and reduced-cost services for patients in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area, including a community needs assessment to help residents find medical care, food, housing, etc.

Idaho

• October 2023: Passed House Bill (HB) 162 during the 2023 legislative session. This legislation expands the ability of Idaho citizens in rural and underserved areas to access health care from providers not physically present in the patient's geographical area. The bill updates the Idaho Telehealth Access Care Act by changing "telehealth" to "virtual care" and clarifying virtual care practice requirements.

Iowa

• January 2023: Implemented new rules allowing veterinarians to dispense from office stock in limited circumstances. The product can be dispensed from office stock to the owner of a veterinary patient to treat an immediate medical need when timely access to a patient-specific supply of compounded medication is not available.

• October 2023: Amended rules in multiple chapters to implement changes made to the Iowa Code during the 2022 legislative session. This includes authorizing registered nurses to assist in the administration of immunizations and vaccinations pursuant to a pharmacist's order.

Louisiana

• October 2023: Provided updates on the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy's regulatory and legislative activities on its website, including reviews of regulatory proposals on DATA-Waiver registration elimination, health care workplace violence prevention, marijuana pharmacy, pharmacy benefits managers, and more.

Massachusetts

• February 2023: Passed Chapter 127 of the Acts of 2022, establishing a statewide standing order for all retail pharmacies to use for dispensing emergency contraception. Training program available through the MGH Institute of Health Professions, also offering continuing education credits.

Maryland

• September 2023: Expanded the membership of the Maryland Board of Pharmacy to include a registered pharmacy technician. Authorized remote prescription-related data entry and granted administration authority of certain vaccines to registered pharmacy technicians.

Mississippi

• April 2023: No longer grants a temporary "pending" status to technicians who have successfully submitted all application components except background check results. Technicians must reflect "active" on the licensing verification portal to be allowed in the dispensing area of a pharmacy.

New Jersey

• July/August 2023: Approved a pilot program pursuant to New Jersey Statutes Annotated 45:14-48(b)(10), allowing for the dispensing of opioid antidotes at no cost to anonymous recipients at pharmacies with standing orders from the commissioner of health or a New Jersey-licensed physician.

New Mexico

• January 2023: Approved rule updates including amendments to the New Mexico Administrative Code related to pharmacist definitions and controlled substances management.

• October 2023: Amended the practice of pharmacy definition in SB 92 to include prescribing devices or supplies for prescribed drug therapy for health conditions and ordering, performing, and interpreting FDA-approved tests.

North Carolina

• January 2023: Revived a requirement for pharmacists to notify prescribers when dispensing an interchangeable biosimilar product. This notification must occur within five business days and include the product name and manufacturer.

Ohio

• February 2023: Amended Ohio Administrative Code to require pharmacists to check the Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS) report before dispensing medications containing gabapentin, addressing overutilization concerns.

Oregon

• February 2023: Adopted permanent rules requiring Retail Drug Outlet pharmacies to notify the public of temporary, emergency, and permanent pharmacy closures, with specific guidelines for notification procedures.

South Carolina

• May 2023: Finalized the joint protocol for the Pharmacy Access Act. Act 210 allows pharmacists to dispense a self-administered hormonal contraceptive or administer an injectable hormonal contraceptive pursuant to a standing order by a prescriber.

South Dakota

• April 2023: The South Dakota Interim Rules Review Committee certified that Administrative Rules of South Dakota 20:51:35 could move forward to final form. The rules elaborate on criteria for pharmacies to accept donated prescription drugs.

Tennessee

• March 2023: Passed two legislative initiatives related to local county health departments and the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database. Required the Board to review rules Public Chapter (PC) 812, PC 908, and PC 1010, which impact pharmacy technicians' scope of practice and collaborative practice agreements for dispensing ivermectin.

Texas

• March 2023: Implemented a new statutory requirement for Board-licensed pharmacists registered before June 1, 2015, to undergo an additional fingerprint background check before renewing their Board license.

Utah

• February 2023: Passed the Cybersecurity Affirmative Defense Act, providing protection to businesses that create, maintain, and comply with industry-recognized cybersecurity regulations.

Washington

• January 2023: Filed a rulemaking inquiry to consider adding or amending rules related to prescription label accessibility standards.

• October 2023: Filed a rulemaking inquiry under WSR 22-09-065 to consider adding or amending rules in Chapter 246-945 Washington Administrative Code, focusing on prescription label accessibility standards.

Wyoming

• October 2023: Reminded pharmacies of the need to obtain a license to dispense antimicrobials pursuant to a prescription following FDA's guidance changes.

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2022 updates

e-prescribing - as of January 2022

• 9 states require e-prescribing for all prescriptions: CA, FL, IA, MI, MN, NV, NY, PA, WV

• Other states have regulations related to e-prescribing specific to controlled substances

• Further restrictions apply; check BOP for state-specific details

DEA

• DEA allows practitioners in various settings to dispense a 3-day supply of MAT. Prerequisite: Practitioners should request an exception from the DEA before performing this action

2022 - New Mexico

• Board-approved prescriptive authority for pharmacists to prescribe prophylaxis therapy in conjunction with point-of-care testing. Certain training is required. Check BOP for details

• Technicians are allowed to administer vaccines. Training and supervision requirements apply. The pharmacist is ultimately responsible. See BOP law for full details

2022 - Wyoming

• A new 2-phase sterile compounding inspection process is now implemented

2022 - Missouri

• Prescription transfer requests (initiated by patient or caregiver) must be completed within one business day

2022 - Washington state

• Healthcare professionals performing telehealth services must complete specific training before rendering these services

2022 - District of Columbia

• New labeling requirements: prescription opioid drugs must include a statement added on the container indicating that the drug is an opioid and has a risk of overdose and addiction

2022 - Massachusetts

• pharmacies can fill CII from non-resident practitioners who have prescription authority from another state.

• Reminders regarding CII:

• CII prescriptions from out of state are valid for 5 days from the date they were issued

• CII non-narcotic prescriptions can be filled from any state

• CII narcotic prescriptions can be filled from states contiguous to Massachusetts or from Maine

2022 - Louisiana

• BOP updated several chapters impacting pharmacy administration, pharmacy operation, tele-pharmacy, among other updates. See BOP website for complete details

2022 - Nevada

• Pharmacists are allowed to dispense self-administered hormonal contraceptives to patients under protocol byt= the Nevada State BOP without a prescription. Restrictions and limitations apply.

• All controlled substance prescriptions must be sent via e-prescribing software

2022 - Tennessee

• BOP requires additional data points to be populated (by pharmacist/prescriber) in the Controlled Substances Monitoring Database.

• BOP added additional rules outlining the usage of CSMD during the dispensing of CII amphetamines

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2021

2021 - Federal

DEA Form 222 is a single-sheet form only. The triplicate form/usage had a sunset date of October 2021

2021 - Georgia

Effective July 2021: HB316 amended the pharmacist-to-technician ratio. The new ratio is 1:4, previously 1:3. Bill includes other updates related to the professional judgment and responsibilities of a pharmacist.

2021 - Massachusetts

Updates to the scope of practice for pharmacists, technicians, and interns regarding the administration of vaccines and medication specific for mental illness/ substance use disorder. Additionally, allowing technicians to perform remote prescription processing and perpetual inventory (restrictions apply, see BOP rules of details). Reference: here

2021 - Ohio

LTC entities are allowed to store and administer vaccinations and biologics to staff members and patients using the entity’s specific dangerous drugs terminal distributor license. (restrictions apply, see BOP rules for details). Reference: here

2021 - Oregon

Approved House and Senate bills that can impact the profession of pharmacy effective 2022

• Senate Bill 629: Allowing pharmacists to use telepharmacy to perform specific services

• House Bill 2648: Allowing pharmacists/technicians to transfer pseudoephedrine containing drugs (restrictions apply)

• House Bill 2958: Allows pharmacists to prescribe, dispense, and administer pre/post-exposure prophylactic antiretroviral drugs (restrictions apply)

2021 - West Virginia

West Virginia pharmacists must check the West Virginia Controlled Substance Monitoring Program database when handling prescriptions for specific populations: CII, Opioids, and Benzodiazepine (restrictions apply, see BOP for details)

2021 - Minnesota

• Product labels: Products containing cannabinoids extracted from hemp can have QR code (or other scannable technology) that link directly to the manufacturer’s website

• RountableRX accepts the donation of certain PTC products (restrictions apply)

2021 - California

January 2022: Specific rules related to the transmission and receiving of prescriptions electronically (restrictions apply, see BOP for details). Reference: here

2021 - Iowa

• Pharmacists must review patient’s medication history prior to dispensing any CV medication that does not require a prescription

Updated PMP requirements:

• CV should be reported to the PMP

• Cough suppressants with codeine should be reported to the PMP

2021 - North Dakota

• Pharmacists can administer vaccines and injectables to patients 3+ years old (restrictions apply)

• Pharmacists can dispense emergency fills for up to 30 day supply (previously 72 hours)

2021 - North Carolina

Epidiolex® is now an unscheduled drug both Federally and in North Carolina (previously was CV)

2021 - Virginia

Emergency regulations authorizing pharmacists to initiate treatment with certain drugs for patients 18 years of age or older became effective January 3, 2021. Pharmacists may now prescribe and dispense these drugs in accordance with the regulations and the statewide protocols listed below (reference: here):

• Hormonal contraception, emergency contraception

• Prenatal vitamins

• Naloxone

• Epinephrine

• Lowering out-of-pocket expenses

• Dietary Fluoride supplement