Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 50, December 14, 2024
Section 27.32 - Continuing education(a) The Board will renew the license of a pharmacist who has completed a minimum of 30 contact hours (3 CEU) of continuing education during the preceding biennial renewal period. Beginning with the license period commencing on October 1, 2011, 2 of the required 30 contact hours shall be completed in courses from the ACPE topic designator "Patient Safety." In addition, for licensees with authority to administer injectable medications, biologicals and immunizations in accordance with section 9.2 of the act (63 P. S. § 390-9.2) and § 27.401 (relating to qualifications for authority), at least 2 of the required 30 hours must concern the administration of injectable medications, biologicals and immunizations, including, but not limited to, disease epidemiology, vaccine characteristics, injection technique, emergency response to adverse events and related topics. Except as provided in subsection (h), only continuing education programs offered by ACPE-accredited providers of continuing pharmaceutical education targeted toward pharmacists are acceptable to the Board.(b) A pharmacist shall prove compliance with subsection (a) by completing and submitting a form provided to the pharmacist by the Board for that purpose with the renewal application. The certificates provided upon completion of an approved program shall be retained by a pharmacist for 2 years after renewal, and shall be produced upon demand by the Board or its agents. The Board will utilize a random audit of 5% of renewals to determine compliance with subsection (a), and may expand the audit if rates of noncompliance at 20% or more of the sample are revealed by the initial audit. Individuals selected for the audit will be required to produce certificates proving the information they provided to the Board on the form submitted with the renewal application. Notwithstanding any disciplinary action taken under subsection (i), a pharmacist found to be in noncompliance with the continuing education requirements shall make up the delinquent contact hours within 6 months of the notice of deficiency from the Board.(c) Both live and correspondence courses will be accepted by the Board as long as they are offered by approved providers.(d) An excess of completed contact hours in one renewal period will not be carried over into the next renewal period.(e) A newly graduated licensee will be exempt from the requirements in subsection (a) for the license renewal immediately following licensure. A reciprocally licensed pharmacist will be required to show compliance with the requirements in subsection (a), but will have the number of hours required to be completed prorated, on a quarterly basis, from the date of licensure to the next date of renewal. For this purpose, each quarter will consist of 3 months, and will be credited for 3.75 contact hours (.375 CEU). The pharmacist will be required to begin accumulating contact hours at the beginning of the next quarter following licensure.(f) A pharmacist whose license has been suspended or revoked for disciplinary reasons shall comply with continuing education requirements during the period of suspension or revocation, if the pharmacist wants to resume practice or petition for licensure reinstatement at the conclusion of the disciplinary period.(g) The Board will consider renewing a license without timely filing of the required hours of continuing education on a case by case basis, upon a showing of incapacity, acute illness or other circumstances which reasonably precluded timely compliance. Pharmacists whose licenses are renewed under this subsection will be required to make up the missing hours of continuing education on a schedule determined by the Board, and to pay applicable fees and fines.(h) Continuing education program providers which are not ACPE-accredited may apply to the Board for approval, and shall make a showing of program accreditation substantially similar to ACPE accreditation standards. Requests for approval shall be submitted to the Board at least 60 days prior to the start date of the program. Retroactive requests for approval will not be considered. The Board will maintain a list of programs approved under this subsection.(i) A pharmacist who fails to comply with this section, or who submits fraudulent contact hour reports, will be subject to disciplinary action.The provisions of this § 27.32 adopted December 19, 1986, effective 12/20/1986, 16 Pa.B. 4883; amended June 14, 1991, effective 6/15/1991, 21 Pa.B. 2710; amended June 30, 2006, effective 7/1/2006, 36 Pa.B. 3237; amended February 12, 2010, effective 2/13/2010, 40 Pa.B. 842. This section cited in 49 Pa. Code § 27.31 (relating to biennial renewal); and 49 Pa. Code § 27.402 (relating to application, renewal and reactivation procedures).