BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON
BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Senator Jerry Hill, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 590 Hearing Date: April 6,
2015
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|Author: |Stone |
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|Version: |February 26, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Sarah Mason |
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Subject: Pharmacy: intern pharmacists.
SUMMARY: Clarifies the means by which intern pharmacist applicants for
licensure and examination can provide pharmacy practice
experience to the Board of Pharmacy.
Existing law:
1)Establishes the practice of pharmacy and provides for the
licensing and regulation of pharmacies and pharmacists by the
Board of Pharmacy (Board). (Business and Professions Code
(BPC) § 4000 et seq.)
2)Defines "intern pharmacist" as a person licensed by the Board
for a period of one to six years if he or she is enrolled in a
school of pharmacy recognized by the Board, two years if he or
she is a graduate of a school of pharmacy recognized by the
Board who has applied to become licensed as a pharmacist, two
years if he or she is a foreign graduate, or one year if he or
she has failed the pharmacist license exam four times and has
remained enrolled in a school of pharmacy. (BPC § 4030)
3)Provides that an intern pharmacist may perform all functions
of a pharmacist at the discretion of and under the direct
supervision and control of a pharmacist whose license is in
good standing with the Board. Specifies that a pharmacist may
not supervise more than two intern pharmacists at any one
time. (BPC § 4114)
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4)Requires an intern pharmacist to complete 1,500 hours of
pharmacy practice that complies with the Standards of
Curriculum established by the Accreditation Council for
Pharmacy Education (ACPE) or with regulations adopted by the
Board before applying for the pharmacist licensure
examination. (BPC § 4209)
5)Requires an intern pharmacist to submit proof of his or her
experience on Board-approved affidavits, or another form
specified by the Board, which shall be certified under penalty
of perjury by a pharmacist under whose supervision such
experience was obtained or by the pharmacist-in-charge at the
pharmacy while the pharmacist intern obtained the experience.
Allows intern hours earned in another state to be certified by
the licensing agency of that state to document proof of those
hours. (Id.)
6)Authorizes an applicant for the examination who has been
licensed as a pharmacist in any state for at least one year,
as certified by the licensing agency of that state, to submit
the certification above to satisfy the required 1,500 hours of
intern experience, provided that the applicant has obtained a
minimum of 900 hours of pharmacy practice experience in a
pharmacy as a pharmacist. Provides that certification of an
applicant's licensure in another state shall be submitted in
writing and signed, under oath, by a duly authorized official
of the state in which the license is held. (Id.)
This bill:
1) Makes clarifying changes by adding "experience" to all
references of pharmacy practice required prior to examination
and licensure for intern pharmacists and substitutes "intern
hours" under current law for "pharmacy practice experience".
2) Specifies that 900 hours of the pharmacy practice experience
required by the Board prior to applying for the pharmacist
licensure examination include experience in a pharmacy as a
pharmacist in both a community and institutional pharmacy
practice setting.
3) Specifies that 900 hours of the pharmacy practice experience
required by the Board for applicants for the pharmacist
SB 590 (Stone) Page 3
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licensure examination who have been licensed as a pharmacist
in any state for at least one year, include experience in a
pharmacy as a pharmacist in both a community and
institutional pharmacy practice setting.
4) Provides that an applicant for the pharmacist licensure
examination who has graduated after January 1, 2016 from an
ACPE-approved college of pharmacy or department of pharmacy
of a university recognized by the Board, shall be deemed to
have satisfied the required 1500 hours of pharmacy practice
experience.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill is keyed "fiscal" by
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
1. Purpose. The Board of Pharmacy is the sponsor of this bill.
According to the Author, many student applicants have
difficulty providing documentation of professional practice
experience to the Board if they have gained experience in
several pharmacies and different pharmacy settings as part of
their pharmacy practice experience over a three to four year
period, due to the requirement that such experience must be
documented and signed under penalty of perjury by a
pharmacist under whose supervision such experience was
obtained (or by another designated pharmacist). The Author
notes, that since all schools of pharmacy recognized by the
Board meet the same standards of curriculum (including
pharmacy practice experience) as outlined in the Pharmacy
Law, the current method of documentation, which can be
cumbersome for applicants, does not actually add value to the
application process or enhance the Board's consumer
protection mandate.
2. Background. Existing law establishes parameters for pharmacy
practice experience and how an applicant for a pharmacist
license must comply with pharmacy practice requirements while
Board regulations provide further specificity on pharmacy
practice experience and in what settings the experience is to
be obtained. In 2014, the Board had various discussions and
determined it should revise its current process for the
SB 590 (Stone) Page 4
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reporting of pharmacy practice experience for individuals who
graduate from an ACPE school of pharmacy, specifically
indicating a desire to accept the PharmD degree from an ACPE
accredited school as documentation that an individual has
completed the required pharmacy practice experience
requirements.
3. Related Legislation. SB 1039 (Hernandez, Chapter 319,
Statutes of 2014) made changes to the authorized tasks of a
pharmacy technician under the direct supervision or control
of a pharmacist and authorized intern pharmacists to perform
specified tasks.
SB 493 (Hernandez, Chapter 469, Statutes of 2013) updated
Pharmacy Law to authorize pharmacists to perform certain
functions according to specified requirements and established
advanced practice pharmacist recognition.
SB 1575 (Committee on Business, Professions and Economic
Development, Chapter 799, Statutes of 2012) streamlined the
processing of applicants for the pharmacist licensure
examination, and ensured that applicants who submit
verification of intern hours worked from another state board
of pharmacy have met the California requirements.
SB 1913 (Committee on Business and Professions, Chapter 695,
Statutes of 2004) established the licensure of intern
pharmacists and set forth specified requirements that an
intern pharmacist must meet, and conditions under which an
intern pharmacist license may be issued as well as
authorizing an intern pharmacist to perform all functions of
a pharmacist at the discretion of and under the supervision
of a pharmacist whose license is in good standing with the
board.
4. Arguments in Support. The California Pharmacists Association
(CPhA) writes in support of this bill, stating that, "Given
that each school of pharmacy carefully monitors the pharmacy
practice experience of students, the burdensome affidavit
requirement is not necessary?It is important to note that the
pharmacy practice experience requirements remain unchanged;
SB 590 only affects the documentation requirements for this
experience."
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SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
Support:
California Pharmacists Association (CPhA)
Opposition:
None on file as of March 31, 2015.
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