SF 1959

2nd Engrossment - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to health professions; allowing the return of drugs dispensed by
pharmacies in certain circumstances; providing for certification of prescriptions;
modifying legend drug prescription requirements; amending Minnesota Statutes
2006, sections 151.01, by adding a subdivision; 151.37, subdivision 2; proposing
coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 151.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 151.01, is amended by adding a
subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 31. new text end

new text begin Central service pharmacy. new text end

new text begin "Central service pharmacy" means a
pharmacy that may provide dispensing functions, drug utilization review, packaging,
labeling, or delivery of a prescription product to another pharmacy for the purpose of
filling a prescription.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [151.215] CERTIFICATION.
new text end

new text begin A pharmacist must certify a prescription, in compliance with Minnesota Board of
Pharmacy rules, before the prescription is dispensed, delivered, mailed, or shipped to
a patient or a patient's caregiver. However, if the prescription has been certified by a
pharmacist at a licensed central service pharmacy, in compliance with Minnesota Board of
Pharmacy rules, an additional certification is not required at the pharmacy that dispenses,
mails, or ships the completed prescription to the patient.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 151.37, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Prescribing and filing.

(a) A licensed practitioner in the course of
professional practice only, may prescribe, administer, and dispense a legend drug, and may
cause the same to be administered by a nurse, a physician assistant, or medical student or
resident under the practitioner's direction and supervision, and may cause a person who
is an appropriately certified, registered, or licensed health care professional to prescribe,
dispense, and administer the same within the expressed legal scope of the person's practice
as defined in Minnesota Statutes. A licensed practitioner may prescribe a legend drug,
without reference to a specific patient, by directing a nurse, pursuant to section 148.235,
subdivisions 8 and 9, physician assistant, or medical student or resident to adhere to
a particular practice guideline or protocol when treating patients whose condition falls
within such guideline or protocol, and when such guideline or protocol specifies the
circumstances under which the legend drug is to be prescribed and administered. An
individual who verbally, electronically, or otherwise transmits a written, oral, or electronic
order, as an agent of a prescriber, shall not be deemed to have prescribed the legend drug.
This paragraph applies to a physician assistant only if the physician assistant meets the
requirements of section 147A.18.

(b) A licensed practitioner that dispenses for profit a legend drug that is to be
administered orally, is ordinarily dispensed by a pharmacist, and is not a vaccine, must
file with the practitioner's licensing board a statement indicating that the practitioner
dispenses legend drugs for profit, the general circumstances under which the practitioner
dispenses for profit, and the types of legend drugs generally dispensed. It is unlawful to
dispense legend drugs for profit after July 31, 1990, unless the statement has been filed
with the appropriate licensing board. For purposes of this paragraph, "profit" means (1)
any amount received by the practitioner in excess of the acquisition cost of a legend drug
for legend drugs that are purchased in prepackaged form, or (2) any amount received
by the practitioner in excess of the acquisition cost of a legend drug plus the cost of
making the drug available if the legend drug requires compounding, packaging, or other
treatment. The statement filed under this paragraph is public data under section 13.03.
This paragraph does not apply to a licensed doctor of veterinary medicine or a registered
pharmacist. Any person other than a licensed practitioner with the authority to prescribe,
dispense, and administer a legend drug under paragraph (a) shall not dispense for profit.
To dispense for profit does not include dispensing by a community health clinic when the
profit from dispensing is used to meet operating expenses.

new text begin (c) A prescription or drug order for a legend drug is not valid if it is based solely
on an online questionnaire, unless it can be established that the prescription or order was
based on a documented patient evaluation adequate to establish a diagnosis and identify
underlying conditions and contraindications to treatment.
new text end

Sec. 4.

new text begin [151.56] COUNTY RETURN OF UNUSED DRUGS OR MEDICAL
DEVICES.
new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding Minnesota Rules, part 6800.2700, pharmacies may accept returns
of unused drugs and medical devices from county jails and juvenile correctional facilities.
In order to return unused drugs and medical devices, the county jail or juvenile correctional
facility must have a trained medication technician on hand twenty-four hours a day, seven
days a week and the medication must be stored in a secured locked storage locker.
new text end