COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 485
(By Senators Prezioso and Unger)
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[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization;
reported March 28, 2005.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §30-5-2 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to the Board of Pharmacy powers and
duties; empowering the Board of Pharmacy to grant a waiver or
variance of all or part of a rule; and empowering the Board of
Pharmacy to waive rules for up to twelve months for approved
pilot or demonstration projects.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §30-5-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. PHARMACISTS, PHARMACY TECHNICIANS, PHARMACY INTERNS AND
PHARMACIES.
§30-5-2. Board of pharmacy; appointment, qualifications and terms
of members; compensation; powers and duties generally;
meetings and notices.
(a) There shall be a State Board of Pharmacy, known as the
"West Virginia Board of Pharmacy", which shall consist of five
practicing pharmacists and two public members who shall be
appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of
the Senate. Any vacancy which occurs in the membership of the
board for any reason, including expiration of term, removal,
resignation, death, disability or disqualification, shall be
immediately filled by the Governor as provided by this section.
Nothing in this section shall require the Governor to change the
composition of the Board prior to the usual expiration of any
member's term. The Governor may consider the diversity of pharmacy
areas of practice when filling vacancies.
(b) Each pharmacist member of the Board, at the time of his
or
her appointment, shall be a resident of this state, licensed and in
good standing to engage in the practice of pharmacy in this state
for a period of at least five years prior to their appointment.
The public members shall be residents of this state who have
attained the age of eighteen years and may not be a past or present
pharmacist, the spouse of a pharmacist, a person who has ever had
any material financial interest in providing pharmacy services or
who has engaged in any activity directly related to the practice of
pharmacy.
(c) Each member of the Board shall receive
two hundred dollars
compensation not to exceed the amount paid to members of the
Legislature for their interim duties as recommended by the Citizens
Legislative Compensation Commission for each day spent in attending to the duties of the Board or of its committees,
not including days
solely spent on travel, and shall be reimbursed for all actual and
necessary expenses incurred in carrying out his or her duties
in a
manner consistent with the guidelines of the Travel Management
Office of the Department of Administration.
(d) The members of the Board in office on the date this
section takes effect shall, unless sooner removed, continue to
serve until their respective terms expire and until their
successors have been appointed and have qualified. Board member
terms shall be for five years with at least one pharmacist member's
term expiring yearly. The Governor may, with the advice and
consent of the Senate, reappoint any member for additional
consecutive terms. Members as of the first day of July, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-five, are eligible for reappointment
to additional terms regardless of the length of time they have
previously served on the Board.
(e) The Board, in addition to the authority, powers and duties
granted to the Board by this chapter and chapter sixteen of this
code, shall have the authority to:
(1) Regulate the practice of pharmacy;
(2) Regulate the employment of licensed interns in pharmacy;
(3) Appoint, within the limit of appropriations, inspectors,
who shall be pharmacists, and investigators to act as agents of the
Board within the provisions of this chapter and chapter sixteen of
this code and rules as the Board shall promulgate;
(4) Adopt rules of professional conduct;
and
(5) Hire an attorney, as may be necessary;
(6) Grant a waiver of, or variance from, all or part of a rule
upon a showing that public health and safety will be equally
protected by a means other than that prescribed in the rule or upon
a showing that compliance with the rule is unreasonably costly and
serves no public benefit. Any waiver or variance that is granted
shall be consistent with state and federal statutes, including the
provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code,
and shall be printed in the State Register. The Board shall also
annually report any waiver or variance that is granted to the Joint
Committee on Government and Finance. The authority granted under
this subdivision shall expire on the first day of July, two
thousand seven; and
(7) Waive rules for up to twelve months
for approved,
innovative
pharmacy pilot or demonstration projects. Detailed
project waiver requests shall be submitted to the Board by the
pharmacist-in-charge of the pharmacy where the project is to be
implemented. No project may be approved by the Board that may
jeopardize public health or safety.
Once approved by the Board,
the pharmacist-in-charge shall make written monthly
reports to the
Board on the progress and objective results of the project.
Board
inspectors shall monitor all projects. On or before the completion
date of the project waiver, the Board shall review the project
results and either make appropriate legislative recommendations or
require termination of the project. The Board may rescind approval
and terminate the project at any time it considers the public interest is not fully protected. All approved pilot projects shall
be printed in the State Register. The Board shall also annually
report on all approved pilot projects to the Joint Committee on
Government and Finance.
The authority granted under this
subdivision shall expire on the first day of July, two thousand
seven
.
(f) A majority of the membership of the Board constitutes a
quorum for the transaction of business, and any motion is approved
by a majority vote of a quorum. All Board members shall be given
advance notice of each Board meeting.
(g) Meetings of the Board shall be held in public session,
except that the Board may hold closed sessions to prepare, approve,
grade or administer examinations. Disciplinary proceedings, prior
to a finding of probable cause, as provided in section seven of
this article shall be held in closed sessions, unless the party
subject to discipline requests that the hearing be held in public
sessions. All discussions or meetings of the Board concerning
personnel matters shall be held in closed session.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Board of
Pharmacy to grant a waiver or variance of all or part of a rule,
and to empower the Board to approve pilot or demonstration
projects.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.)