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Chapter 148

Section 148.235

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148.235 Prescribing drugs and therapeutic devices.

Subdivision 1. Certified nurse-midwives. A certified nurse-midwife may prescribe and administer drugs and therapeutic devices within practice as a certified nurse-midwife.

Subd. 2. Certified nurse practitioners. A certified nurse practitioner who has a written agreement with a physician based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Medical Association that defines the delegated responsibilities related to the prescription of drugs and therapeutic devices, may prescribe and administer drugs and therapeutic devices within the scope of the written agreement and within practice as a certified nurse practitioner. The written agreement required under this subdivision shall be based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Medical Association as of January 1, 1996, unless both associations agree to revisions.

Subd. 2a. Certified registered nurse anesthetists. A certified registered nurse anesthetist who has a written agreement with a physician based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Medical Association that defines the delegated responsibilities related to the prescription of drugs and therapeutic devices, may prescribe and administer drugs and therapeutic devices within the scope of the written agreement and within practice as a certified registered nurse anesthetist.

Subd. 3. Repealed by amendment, 1999 c 172 s 5

Subd. 4. Certified clinical nurse specialists in psychiatric and mental health nursing. A certified clinical nurse specialist who (1) has successfully completed no less than 30 hours of formal study in the prescribing of psychotropic medications and medications to treat their side effects which included instruction in health assessment, psychotropic classifications, psychopharmacology, indications, dosages, contraindications, side effects, and evidence of application; and (2) has a written agreement with a psychiatrist or other physician based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Psychiatric Association that specifies and defines the delegated responsibilities related to the prescription of drugs in relationship to the diagnosis, may prescribe and administer drugs used to treat psychiatric and behavioral disorders and the side effects of those drugs within the scope of the written agreement and within practice as a certified clinical nurse specialist in psychiatric and mental health nursing. The written agreement required under this subdivision shall be based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Psychiatric Association as of January 1, 1996, unless both associations agree to revisions.

Nothing in this subdivision removes or limits the legal professional liability of the treating psychiatrist, certified clinical nurse specialist, mental health clinic or hospital for the prescription and administration of drugs by a certified clinical nurse specialist in accordance with this subdivision.

Subd. 4a. Other certified clinical nurse specialists. A certified clinical nurse specialist who: (1) has successfully completed no less than 30 hours of formal study from a college, university, or university health care institution, which included the following: instruction in health assessment, medication classifications, indications, dosages, contraindications, and side effects; supervised practice; and competence evaluation, including evidence of the application of knowledge pertaining to prescribing for and therapeutic management of the clinical type of patients in the certified clinical nurse specialist's practice; and (2) has a written agreement with a physician based on standards established by the Minnesota Nurses Association and the Minnesota Medical Association that defines the delegated responsibilities related to the prescription of drugs and therapeutic devices, may prescribe and administer drugs and therapeutic devices within the scope of the written agreement and within practice as a certified clinical nurse specialist.

Subd. 4b. Dispensing authority. An advanced practice registered nurse who is authorized under this section to prescribe drugs is authorized to dispense drugs subject to the same requirements established for the prescribing of drugs. This authority to dispense extends only to those drugs described in the written agreement entered into under this section. The authority to dispense includes, but is not limited to, the authority to receive and dispense sample drugs.

Subd. 5. Repealed by amendment, 1999 c 172 c 5

Subd. 6. Standards for written agreements; review and filing. Written agreements required under this section shall be maintained at the primary practice site of the advanced practice registered nurse and of the collaborating physician. The written agreement does not need to be filed with the Board of Nursing or the Board of Medical Practice.

Subd. 7. Federal registration. Any advanced practice registered nurse who applies to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration for a registration number shall submit to the board:

(1) proof that requirements of this section are met; and

(2) a processing fee of $50.

Subd. 8. Prescription by protocol. A registered nurse may implement a protocol that does not reference a specific patient and results in a prescription of a legend drug that has been predetermined and delegated by a licensed practitioner as defined under section 151.01, subdivision 23, when caring for a patient whose condition falls within the protocol and when the protocol specifies the circumstances under which the drug is to be prescribed or administered.

Subd. 9. Vaccine by protocol. A nurse may implement a protocol that does not reference a specific patient and results in the administration of a vaccine that has been predetermined and delegated by a licensed practitioner as defined in section 151.01, subdivision 23, when caring for a patient whose characteristics fall within the protocol and when the protocol specifies the contraindications for implementation, including patients or populations of patients for whom the vaccine must not be administered and the conditions under which the vaccine must not be administered.

Subd. 10. Administration of medications by unlicensed personnel in nursing facilities. Notwithstanding the provisions of Minnesota Rules, part 4658.1360, subpart 2, a graduate of a foreign nursing school who has successfully completed an approved competency evaluation under the provisions of section 144A.61 is eligible to administer medications in a nursing facility upon completion of a medication training program for unlicensed personnel offered through a postsecondary educational institution, which meets the requirements specified in Minnesota Rules, part 4658.1360, subpart 2, item B.

HIST: 1990 c 483 s 2; 1993 c 337 s 10; 1994 c 389 s 2; 1994 c 470 s 1-3; 1996 c 446 art 1 s 67,68; 1996 c 451 art 6 s 1; 1997 c 7 art 1 s 77; 1999 c 172 s 5; 2002 c 362 s 1,2; 2003 c 87 s 5

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Revisor of Statutes