1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to professions and occupations; defining and 
  1.3             regulating pharmacy technicians; amending Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes 1996, sections 151.01, by adding a 
  1.5             subdivision; and 151.06, subdivision 1; proposing 
  1.6             coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 151. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 151.01, is 
  1.9   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.10     Subd. 15a.  [PHARMACY TECHNICIAN.] The term "pharmacy 
  1.11  technician" means a person not licensed as a pharmacist or a 
  1.12  pharmacist intern, who assists the pharmacist in the preparation 
  1.13  and dispensing of medications by performing computer entry of 
  1.14  prescription data and other manipulative tasks.  A pharmacy 
  1.15  technician shall not perform tasks specifically reserved to a 
  1.16  licensed pharmacist or requiring professional judgment.  
  1.17     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 151.06, 
  1.18  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.19     Subdivision 1. [GENERALLY; RULES.] (a)  [POWERS AND 
  1.20  DUTIES.] The board of pharmacy shall have the power and it shall 
  1.21  be its duty: 
  1.22     (1) to regulate the practice of pharmacy; 
  1.23     (2) to regulate the manufacture, wholesale, and retail sale 
  1.24  of drugs within this state; 
  1.25     (3) to regulate the identity, labeling, purity, and quality 
  1.26  of all drugs and medicines dispensed in this state, using the 
  2.1   United States Pharmacopeia and the National Formulary, or any 
  2.2   revisions thereof, or standards adopted under the federal act as 
  2.3   the standard; 
  2.4      (4) to enter and inspect by its authorized representative 
  2.5   any and all places where drugs, medicines, medical gases, or 
  2.6   veterinary drugs or devices are sold, vended, given away, 
  2.7   compounded, dispensed, manufactured, wholesaled, or held; it may 
  2.8   secure samples or specimens of any drugs, medicines, medical 
  2.9   gases, or veterinary drugs or devices after paying or offering 
  2.10  to pay for such sample; it shall be entitled to inspect and make 
  2.11  copies of any and all records of shipment, purchase, 
  2.12  manufacture, quality control, and sale of these items provided, 
  2.13  however, that such inspection shall not extend to financial 
  2.14  data, sales data, or pricing data; 
  2.15     (5) to examine and license as pharmacists all applicants 
  2.16  whom it shall deem qualified to be such; 
  2.17     (6) to license wholesale drug distributors; 
  2.18     (7) to deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew any 
  2.19  registration or license required under this chapter, to any 
  2.20  applicant or registrant or licensee upon any of the following 
  2.21  grounds: 
  2.22     (i) fraud or deception in connection with the securing of 
  2.23  such license or registration; 
  2.24     (ii) in the case of a pharmacist, conviction in any court 
  2.25  of a felony; 
  2.26     (iii) in the case of a pharmacist, conviction in any court 
  2.27  of an offense involving moral turpitude; 
  2.28     (iv) habitual indulgence in the use of narcotics, 
  2.29  stimulants, or depressant drugs; or habitual indulgence in 
  2.30  intoxicating liquors in a manner which could cause conduct 
  2.31  endangering public health; 
  2.32     (v) unprofessional conduct or conduct endangering public 
  2.33  health; 
  2.34     (vi) gross immorality; 
  2.35     (vii) employing, assisting, or enabling in any manner an 
  2.36  unlicensed person to practice pharmacy; 
  3.1      (viii) conviction of theft of drugs, or the unauthorized 
  3.2   use, possession, or sale thereof; 
  3.3      (ix) violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or 
  3.4   any of the rules of the state board of pharmacy; 
  3.5      (x) in the case of a pharmacy license, operation of such 
  3.6   pharmacy without a pharmacist present and on duty; 
  3.7      (xi) in the case of a pharmacist, physical or mental 
  3.8   disability which could cause incompetency in the practice of 
  3.9   pharmacy; 
  3.10     (xii) in the case of a pharmacist, the suspension or 
  3.11  revocation of a license to practice pharmacy in another state; 
  3.12  or 
  3.13     (xiii) in the case of a pharmacist, aiding suicide or 
  3.14  aiding attempted suicide in violation of section 609.215 as 
  3.15  established by any of the following: 
  3.16     (A) a copy of the record of criminal conviction or plea of 
  3.17  guilty for a felony in violation of section 609.215, subdivision 
  3.18  1 or 2; 
  3.19     (B) a copy of the record of a judgment of contempt of court 
  3.20  for violating an injunction issued under section 609.215, 
  3.21  subdivision 4; 
  3.22     (C) a copy of the record of a judgment assessing damages 
  3.23  under section 609.215, subdivision 5; or 
  3.24     (D) a finding by the board that the person violated section 
  3.25  609.215, subdivision 1 or 2.  The board shall investigate any 
  3.26  complaint of a violation of section 609.215, subdivision 1 or 2; 
  3.27     (8) to employ necessary assistants and make rules for the 
  3.28  conduct of its business; ~~and~~ 
  3.29     (9) to register pharmacy technicians; and 
  3.30     (10) to perform such other duties and exercise such other 
  3.31  powers as the provisions of the act may require.  
  3.32     (b)  [TEMPORARY SUSPENSION.] In addition to any other 
  3.33  remedy provided by law, the board may, without a hearing, 
  3.34  temporarily suspend a license for not more than 60 days if the 
  3.35  board finds that a pharmacist has violated a statute or rule 
  3.36  that the board is empowered to enforce and continued practice by 
  4.1   the pharmacist would create an imminent risk of harm to others.  
  4.2   The suspension shall take effect upon written notice to the 
  4.3   pharmacist, specifying the statute or rule violated.  At the 
  4.4   time it issues the suspension notice, the board shall schedule a 
  4.5   disciplinary hearing to be held under the administrative 
  4.6   procedure act.  The pharmacist shall be provided with at least 
  4.7   20 days notice of any hearing held under this subdivision. 
  4.8      (c)  [RULES.] For the purposes aforesaid, it shall be the 
  4.9   duty of the board to make and publish uniform rules not 
  4.10  inconsistent herewith for carrying out and enforcing the 
  4.11  provisions of this chapter.  The board shall adopt rules 
  4.12  regarding prospective drug utilization review and patient 
  4.13  counseling by pharmacists.  A pharmacist in the exercise of the 
  4.14  pharmacist's professional judgment, upon the presentation of a 
  4.15  new prescription by a patient or the patient's caregiver or 
  4.16  agent, shall perform the prospective drug utilization review 
  4.17  required by rules issued under this subdivision. 
  4.18     Sec. 3.  [151.102] [PHARMACY TECHNICIAN.] 
  4.19     A pharmacy technician may assist a pharmacist in the 
  4.20  practice of pharmacy by performing nonjudgmental tasks and works 
  4.21  under the personal and direct supervision of the pharmacist.  A 
  4.22  pharmacist may supervise two technicians, as long as the 
  4.23  pharmacist assumes responsibility for all the functions 
  4.24  performed by the technicians.  Nothing in this section prohibits 
  4.25  the board of pharmacy from operating according to established 
  4.26  rules setting ratios of technicians to pharmacists greater than 
  4.27  two to one for the functions specified in rule.  The delegation 
  4.28  of any duties, tasks, or functions by a pharmacist to a pharmacy 
  4.29  technician is subject to continuing review and becomes the 
  4.30  professional and personal responsibility of the pharmacist who 
  4.31  directed the pharmacy technician to perform the duty, task, or 
  4.32  function.