STAND. COM. REP. 2599

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: S.B. No. 2612

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 2612 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MANDATORY CONTINUING EDUCATION FOR PHARMACISTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a continuing education requirement for pharmacist license renewal.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the Board of Pharmacy, Hawaii Pharmacists Association, Hawaii Medical Service Association, Kuakini Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente, and an individual.

In 2003, the Food and Drug Administration approved four hundred sixty-six new drugs. The dynamic nature of the pharmaceutical industry requires that pharmacists keep abreast of new developments in the profession and the industry, particularly with respect to new drugs and new drug therapies, and changes in the evidence-based used of drugs. Consumers depend upon pharmacists to be knowledgeable about the efficacious and safe use of prescription drugs and to monitor drug regimens for drug interactions, adverse drug effects, and contraindications.

This measure will help to ensure that pharmacists remain current in their professional knowledge and skills by requiring that pharmacist licensees complete thirty hours of continuing education each licensing biennium as a condition of license renewal. With the enactment of this measure, Hawaii will no longer be the only state in the nation without a continuing education requirement for pharmacist licensees.

Your Committee has amended this measure to:

(1) Redefine the term "continuing education courses" to emphasize the purposes of continuing education to improve patient safety and maintain quality national standards in the prevention of medication errors;

(2) Delay the effect of the continuing education requirement until the license renewal period for the licensing biennium beginning on January 1, 2008;

(3) Clarify that the continuing education requirement does not apply to licensees who graduate from an accredited pharmacy school within one year of their first license renewal period; and

(4) Not defer to January 1, 2007, the Board's authority to conduct random compliance audits of licensees.

In addition, your Committee made technical, nonsubstantive amendments to the measure for purposes of consistency and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2612, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2612, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing,

____________________________

RON MENOR, Chair