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Minnesota Board of Pharmacy |
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Minnesota Board of Pharmacy |
DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS. No disciplinary actions were finalized by the Board during the months of September, October, or November of 1997.
LEGISLATURE PASSES SYRINGE ACCESS INITIATIVE TO PREVENT HIV TRANSMISSION. The Minnesota Legislature enacted language regarding the sale, by pharmacies, of limited quantities of clean needles and syringes to IV drug users, which will become effective on July 1, 1998. Under the Legislation, a licensed pharmacy may sell, without a prescription, unused hypodermic needles and syringes in quantities of ten or fewer to known IV drug users. The Legislation requires syringes and needles to be stored in a manner that makes them available only to authorized personnel of the pharmacy and not openly available to customers. Pharmacies may not advertise to the public the availability of needles and syringes for retail sale, must participate in an activity that supports proper disposal of used syringes and needles, and may give the purchaser educational materials developed by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). In addition, the definition of "drug paraphernalia" was changed so that it does not include the possession, manufacture, delivery, or sale of unused syringes or needles in quantities of ten or fewer.
MDH is required to provide technical assistance to pharmacies and provide printed materials about the phone numbers for public HIV counseling and testing sites, the state's HIV hotline, disposal of used syringes, and general HIV prevention and care. MDH is also required to submit an interim report to the legislature by January 15, 1998, including a plan for implementing the syringe access initiative to prevent the spread of HIV. The plan must include strategies for coordinating the efforts of MDH, community health organizations, community-based HIV service organizations, pharmacists, and others to provide information about the prevention initiative; to maximize opportunities to make referrals to health services; to collect used syringes; and to evaluate the initiative's impact. A final report, including a comprehensive evaluation, is to be made by MDH by January 15, 2002.
This initiative, proposed by the Minnesota AIDS Project, received support from the MDH and the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy because it represents one important strategy in a larger comprehensive approach to the prevention of HIV/AIDS in Minnesota. The Minnesota AIDS Project also worked with the Minnesota
Pharmacists Association (MPhA) to modify certain terms of the proposal so that the number of syringes per package being sold, mandatory syringe return, and mandatory AIDS resource information distribution provisions were either stricken or made acceptable to pharmacists. The initiative is crafted after a similar effort in Connecticut which resulted in a significant reduction in needlesharing among injecting drug users.
The MDH is currently in the process of receiving feedback and suggestions from pharmacists regarding the implementation and evaluation of the initiative. All licensed pharmacies will be receiving a letter and a packet of materials from MDH in upcoming months. In addition, focus groups and/or interviews with pharmacists and pharmacy representatives are planned. If you have feedback or suggestions that you would like to share, or for more information about the initiative, please call Elaine Collison, AIDS/STD Prevention Services Section, MDH, at (612) 623-5698.
NAME TAGS NOW REQUIRED. During the last legislative session, a law was passed which requires all health care providers to wear an identifying name tag when providing care to consumers. This means that all pharmacists must now wear name tags when on duty. The precise language of the legislation is as follows:
"Any health care provider who is licensed, credentialed, or registered by a health-related licensing board as defined under section 214.01, subdivision 2, must wear a name tag that indicates by words, letters, abbreviations, or insignia the profession or occupation of the individual. The name tag must be worn whenever the health care provider is rendering health services to a patient, unless wearing the name tag would create a safety or health risk to the patient."
COMPOUNDING OF FEN-PHEN IS A NO-NO. The federal law portion of this newsletter contains several articles relating to the use of fen-phen in weight reduction programs and the serious health risks which have become associated with the use of these products.
While the Board has not received any first hand information that Minnesota pharmacists have been compounding fen-phen since commercially available fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine were withdrawn from the market, the Board is concerned that FDA, apparently, has received information that a number of pharmacies in various parts of the country may be compounding these products.
In light of the serious health risks associated with the use of fen-phen for the long-term management of obesity, the Board has significant concerns about the possibility of Minnesota pharmacists engaging in the compounding of these products. The Board expects Minnesota pharmacies to refrain from distributing compounded fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine products.
IT'S LICENSE RENEWAL TIME FOR PHARMACISTS. License renewal applications for all Minnesota licensed pharmacists were mailed to each pharmacist's address of record at the end of December of 1997. Any Minnesota licensed pharmacist, who has not yet received their 1998 pharmacist license renewal application, should immediately contact the Board of Pharmacy to verify the accuracy of their address.
License renewals should be returned to the Board office by February 1, so that the Board has an opportunity to process the renewal and generate your new license to practice pharmacy before the March 1 expiration date of the 1997 license. Those pharmacists who delay until after March 1 in sending in their renewals will be subject to a 50% late fee and, in addition, cannot legally practice pharmacy after March 1, and until such time as the new license is generated.
PHARMACISTS PURSUE PRACTICE ACT CHANGES. The Pharmacy Practice Task Force, a group of Minnesota pharmacists representing all areas of pharmacy, began work more than a year ago to review pharmacy's role in the health care delivery system and recommend changes in current law. The work of this group is supported by the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy, the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, the Minnesota Society of Health Systems Pharmacists, the Minnesota College of Clinical Pharmacy, and the Minnesota Pharmacists Association. All groups have pledged support for an effort to change the law defining the practice of pharmacy in Minnesota.
The proposed revisions of the law include three important points. The addition of language, including patient counseling regarding drug therapy; the addition of pharmacists administering medications; and dependent drug therapy decision-making by pharmacists under written protocols supporting the practice of collaborative patient care.
The task force members believe that the impact of the proposed changes will be positive ones for pharmacy and for patients. Pharmacists should have the opportunity to provide efficient and enhanced patient care, have direct involvement with patients and other providers, and enjoy recognition and reimbursement for those activities.
This is an important time for pharmacy. Pharmacists have united in this immense, long-term, expensive effort to expand pharmacy's scope of practice and expect all pharmacists' support.
Watch for further information on how each Minnesota pharmacist can contribute to the success of this endeavor.
Members of the Task Force, chaired by Julie Johnson of Blomberg Pharmacy, include:
Anne Larson, Abbott Northwestern Hospital
Steve Basiago, PCS Health Systems
Vern Kassekert, Walgreens District Office
Penny Lepinski, College of Pharmacy
Mary Beth O'Connell, College of Pharmacy
Chuck Cooper, Hennepin County Medical Center
Don Uden, College of Pharmacy
John Patrias, Diversified Pharmaceutical Service
Greg Eaton, Min-No-Aya-Win Clinic Pharmacy
Scott Setzephant, HLP Service/Roche
Gary Schneider, HMS Disease Management
Bill Bond, MPhA
David Holmstrom, Board of Pharmacy
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