CHAPTER 259
HB 1376 – FINAL VERSION
05/05/10 1698s
02Jun2010… 2165eba
2010 SESSION
10/04
HOUSE BILL 1376
AN ACT relative to the regulation of pharmacies and pharmacists.
SPONSORS: Rep. Case, Rock 1; Rep. Bulis, Graf 1; Rep. Donovan, Sull 4; Rep. Mann, Rock 1; Rep. Wendelboe, Belk 1; Sen. Carson, Dist 14
COMMITTEE: Executive Departments and Administration
This bill makes various technical changes to the regulation of pharmacies and pharmacists by the pharmacy board.
This bill is a request of the pharmacy board.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
05/05/10 1698s
02Jun2010… 2165eba
10-2456
10/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Ten
AN ACT relative to the regulation of pharmacies and pharmacists.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
259:1 Pharmacy Board; Examinations. Amend RSA 318:10 to read as follows:
318:10 Examinations. The board shall hold meetings for the [examination of applicants for licensure,] granting of licenses and the transaction of other business at least quarterly, and at such time and place as they may see fit. They shall [examine] evaluate through an examination all persons, in the art and science of pharmacy and its allied branches, who meet the requirements herein provided and who make application for licensure as licensed pharmacists.
259:2 Pharmacy Prescriptions. Amend RSA 318:14 to read as follows:
318:14 Pharmacy. A licensed pharmacist shall have the right to conduct a pharmacy for the compounding of medicines upon physicians’, dentists’, optometrists’, podiatrists’, veterinarians’, [and] advanced practice registered nurses’, naturopathic doctors’, and physician assistants’ prescriptions and for the manufacture, sale, and distribution of drugs, medicines, and poisons.
259:3 National Examination. Amend RSA 318:18, I(b)(3) to read as follows:
(3) File proof satisfactory to the board, substantiated by proper affidavits, of a minimum of one year (1,500 hours) internship activity in a community or institutional pharmacy in the United States or Canada or an equivalent program which has been approved by the board of pharmacy; and shall pass the national examination [given by the pharmacy board] administered by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) to establish his or her fitness to practice the profession of pharmacy. The internship required in this section shall be service and experience in a community or institutional pharmacy under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist and shall be predominantly related to the selling of drugs and medical supplies; interpreting, compounding, preparing and dispensing of prescriptions; preparing of pharmaceutical products; keeping records and making reports required under federal and state statutes; and otherwise practicing pharmacy under the immediate supervision and direction of a licensed pharmacist.
259:4 Application Fee. Amend RSA 318:23 to read as follows:
318:23 Application Fee for Pharmacist License. Each person applying for a license to practice the profession of pharmacy in this state by way of examination shall pay a reasonable [examination] application fee to be established by the pharmacy board. This fee shall include the cost of standard examination forms, the cost of administering the examination, and the cost of investigating the applicant’s qualifications to become a pharmacist in this state.
259:5 Pharmacy Technician; Changes. Amend RSA 318:26-a to read as follows:
318:26-a Change in Name, Employment, or Residence. Any pharmacist or pharmacy technician who changes his or her name, place or status of employment, or residence shall notify the board in writing within 15 days. For failure to report such a change within 15 days, the board may suspend the pharmacist’s license or the pharmacy technician’s registration. Reinstatement shall be made only upon payment of a reasonable fee as established by the board.
259:6 Disciplinary Action; Licenses. Amend the introductory paragraph and subparagraphs (a)-(f) of RSA 318:29, V to read as follows:
V. The board may, after notice and hearing, suspend or revoke a pharmacy permit, license, or registration for grounds which include, but are not limited to:
(a) The suspension, revocation, or expiration of the pharmacist license of the pharmacist-in-charge.
(b) Termination of the employment of the pharmacist-in-charge with the pharmacy.
(c) Operation of the pharmacy in a manner that is in violation of federal, state, or local drug or pharmacy-related law, rule, or regulation.
(d) Conviction of the pharmacist-in-charge, an owner, a corporate officer, the corporation, or the pharmacy of a felony, a misdemeanor resulting from a violation of any federal, state, or local drug or pharmacy-related law, rule or regulation, or an act involving moral turpitude or gross immorality.
(e) Unsanitary conditions.
(f) Fraud, intentional misrepresentation or perjury in securing the permit, license, or registration or in any hearing before the board.
259:7 Investigatory Powers; Registrants. Amend RSA 318:30, V to read as follows:
V. The board may at any time subpoena medical and pharmacy records from its licensees, registrants, and permittees and from physicians, dentists, veterinarians, advanced registered nurses, hospitals, and other health care providers or facilities licensed by or certified in this state. Such subpoenas shall be served by certified mail or by personal delivery to the address shown on the licensee’s, registrant’s, or permittee’s current license, certificate or permit, and no witness or other fee shall be required. A minimum of 15 days’ advance notice shall be allowed for complying with a subpoena duces tecum issued under this chapter.
259:8 Prescriptions; Electronic Signature. Amend RSA 318:47-c, II(a) to read as follows:
II.(a) A prescription that is electronically generated by a licensed prescriber, transmitted and received at the pharmacy by computer systems shall contain at least the name of the patient, the name, strength, and quantity of the drug prescribed, any directions specified by the prescriber, the name of the practitioner prescribing the medication, and shall be dated and signed using an electronic signature by the prescribing practitioner on the day issued[, and ]. Such electronic signature shall be [in an electronic format as defined in RSA 294-E:2, VIII] made in accordance with RSA 294-E.
259:9 New Paragraph; Definitions. Amend RSA 318:1 by inserting after paragraph XXIV the following new paragraph:
XXIV-a. “Electronic signature’’ means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.
259:10 Fraud or Deceit. Amend RSA 318:52-a to read as follows:
318:52-a Fraud or Deceit. It is unlawful to obtain or attempt to obtain a drug or device sold by prescription of a physician, dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, veterinarian, naturopathic doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse that bears a statement that it is to be dispensed or sold only by or on the prescription of a physician, dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, veterinarian, naturopathic doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse by (a) fraud, deceit, misrepresentation or subterfuge; (b) by the forgery or alteration of a prescription or of any written order; or (c) by the concealment of a material fact; or (d) the use of a false name or the giving of a false address.
259:11 Repeal. RSA 318:22, relative to a limitation on reciprocity, is repealed.
259:12 Prescriptions; Fraud or Deceit. Amend RSA 318:52-a to read as follows:
318:52-a Fraud or Deceit. It is unlawful to obtain or attempt to obtain a drug or device sold by prescription of a physician, dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, veterinarian, naturopathic doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse that bears a statement that it is to be dispensed or sold only by or on the prescription of a physician, dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, veterinarian, naturopathic doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse by:
[(a)] I. Fraud, deceit, misrepresentation or subterfuge;
[(b) by] II. The forgery or alteration of a prescription or of any written order;
[or (c) by] III. The concealment of a material fact;
[or (d)] IV. The use of a false name or the giving of a false address[.]; or
V. Submission of an electronic or on-line medical history form that fails to establish a valid practitioner-patient relationship.
259:13 Contingency. If HB 1435-FN of the 2010 legislative session becomes law, section 12 of this act shall take effect on January 1, 2011 at 12:01 a.m. If HB 1435-FN of the 2010 legislative session does not become law, section 12 of this act shall not take effect.
259:14 Effective Date.
I. Section 12 of this act shall take effect as provided in section 13 of this act.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved: July 6, 2010
Effective Date: I. Section 12 shall take effect as provided in section 13.
II. Remainder shall take effect July 6, 2010.