Registration of Pharmacy Technicians in Institutional Pharmacies

Connecticut General Statutes Section 20-598a – Registration of pharmacy technicians.

(a) No person shall act as a pharmacy technician unless registered with or certified with, the department.

(b) The department shall, upon authorization of the commission, register as a pharmacy technician any person who presents evidence satisfactory to the department that such person is qualified to perform, under the direct supervision of a pharmacist, routine functions in the dispensing of drugs that do not require the use of professional judgment. The qualifications for registration as a pharmacy technician under this section shall be in accordance with (1) the standards of an institutional pharmacy, a care-giving institution or a correctional or juvenile training institution, in the case of employment in any such pharmacy or institution, or (2) the standards established by regulation adopted by the commissioner in accordance with chapter 54, in the case of employment in a pharmacy. As used in this subsection, "direct supervision" means a supervising pharmacist (A) is physically present in the area or location where the pharmacy technician is performing routine drug dispensing functions, and (B) conducts in-process and final checks on the pharmacy technician's performance.

(c) The department shall, upon authorization of the commission, certify as a pharmacy technician any person who meets the requirements for registration as a pharmacy technician, pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, and who holds a certification from the Pharmacy Technician Certification board or any other equivalent pharmacy technician certification program approved by the department.

(d) The fee required by section 20-601, as amended, shall accompany an application for registration under this section. A registration as a pharmacy technician shall be valid for one year and may be renewed upon application and payment of the fee required by section 20-601, as amended.

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 20-576-11 -  Change of name or address

Any pharmacist or registered pharmacy technician changing the pharmacist’s or technician’s name or home address shall notify the commission of such change within five days.

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 20-576-32 – Pharmacy technicians.   Definitions

(a) The definitions in section 20-571 of the CONNECTICUT General Statutes and this section shall apply to sections 20-576-33 [through] TO 20-576-39 inclusive, of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies. The term pharmacy technician does not include:

(1) persons working in an institutional pharmacy who are not engaged in the compounding and dispensing of medications, such as stock clerks and clerical personnel; and
(2) persons working in a pharmacy who are not engaged in the compounding and dispensing of medications, such as stock clerks, cashiers, clerical personnel and data entry personnel performing routine functions such as entering and retrieving basic information not directly related to dispensing as defined in subdivision (9) of section 20-571 of the Connecticut General Statutes, getting prescription files and other manual records from storage, generating computer records such as refill logs and inventories of dispensing for the signature or initials of the pharmacist, handling or delivering completed prescriptions to the patient or the patient's agent, and ringing up or receiving sales. Data entry of demographic and insurance information shall not be considered to be directly related to dispensing.

(b) "Supervising pharmacist" means a pharmacist who supervises pharmacy technicians; who is fully aware of and responsible for all activities pertinent to drug preparation, dispensing and distribution in which pharmacy technicians are engaged; and who conducts in-process and final checks on the performance of such pharmacy technicians.

(c) “Certified Pharmacy Technician” means a person who holds an active certification from the pharmacy technician certification board, or any other equivalent pharmacy technician certification approved by the commission of pharmacy.

(d) "Director of pharmacy" means the pharmacist designated by the facility administrator in a care-giving, correctional or juvenile training institution as being in direct charge of, and having overall responsibility for the operation and management of pharmacy services of that institution.

(e) "Inpatient pharmacy" means that area of an institutional pharmacy which is engaged in the manufacture, production, sale and distribution of drugs, devices and other pharmaceutical related materials used in the diagnosis and treatment of registered inpatients of a care-giving, correctional or juvenile training institution.

(f) "Satellite pharmacy" means an extension of an inpatient pharmacy which provides decentralized pharmaceutical care to persons in specific locations within a care-giving, correctional or juvenile training institution, including but not limited to specific patient care areas, nursing units, operating rooms and critical care units.

(g) "Outpatient pharmacy" means that area of an institutional pharmacy which provides pharmaceutical care to registered outpatients receiving treatment at a care giving institution.

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 20-576-33 - Ratio

The ratio of pharmacy technicians to pharmacists in an institutional pharmacy shall be as follows:

(1) In an outpatient pharmacy, the ratio shall not exceed two pharmacy technicians to one supervising pharmacist, except  that the commission may, in its  discretion, grant a petition  based on demonstrated need from anydirectorof pharmacy for a ratio not to exceed three pharmacy technicians to one supervising pharmacist;

(2) In  an inpatient pharmacy, the ratio   shallnotexceed three pharmacy technicians to one supervisingpharmacist, except  that the commission may, initsdiscretion, grant a petition  based on demonstrated need from any directorof pharmacy for a ratio not to exceed five pharmacy technicians to one supervising pharmacist; and

(3) In a satellite pharmacy, the ratio shall not exceed three pharmacy technicians to one supervising pharmacist, except that the commission may, in its discretion, grant  a petition based on demonstrated need from any director of  pharmacy for a ratio not to exceed five pharmacy technicians to  one supervising pharmacist.

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 20-576-34 – Supervision and responsibility

The pharmacist providing direct supervision of pharmacy technicians shall be responsible for their actions.  Any violations relating to the dispensing of drugs resulting from the actions of pharmacy technicians, or the use of pharmacy technicians in the performance of tasks in a manner not in conformance with section 20-613 of the General Statutes or section 20-576-35 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, shall constitute cause for action against the license of the su­pervising pharmacist in accordance with section 20-579 of the General Stat­utes.

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies Section 20-576-35 - Limitations   

(a) Pharmacy technicians shall not:

      (1) receive new prescription orders verbally from a prescribing practitioner or the practitioner's agent;

      (2) consult with a patient or the patient's  agent regarding medication, either before or after it has been dispensed, or re­garding any medical information contained in a patient medication record system;

      (3) perform any identification, evaluation, interpretation or needed clarification of a prescription;

      (4) consult with the prescribing practitioner or the practitioner's agent regarding a patient or any medical informa­tion pertaining to the patient's prescription;

      (5) interpret the clinical data in a patient medication record system;

      (6) perform professional consultation with prescribing practitioners, nurses or other health care professionals or their autho­rized agents;

      (7) verify a prescription prior to its release for patient use; and

      (8) determine generically and therapeutically equivalent drug products to be substituted for brand name drug products in  accordance with section 20-619 of the General Statutes.

(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit a pharmacy technician from communicating with a prescribing practitioner or his agent to obtain an authorization for the renewal of an existing prescription for a drug other than a controlled substance that can no longer be refilled, provided the following conditions are met:

(1) the supervising pharmacist is aware that such an authorization is being requested;

(2) the refill for which the authorization is being requested is identical to the original prescription and there is no change in the prescribed drug, its strength, form, quantity, dose, route of administration or in any other element of the prescription; and

(3) all refill authorizations obtained by the pharmacy technician are reviewed by the supervising pharmacist to insure that there is no change in the prescription.

(c) Pharmacy technicians shall wear name tags or similar forms of identification that clearly identify them to the public as pharmacy technicians.