Senate Bill sb0692c1

    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692

    By the Committee on Health Regulation; and Senator Saunders





    588-1984-07

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to physician assistants;

  3         amending ss. 458.347, 459.022, F.S.; requiring

  4         that a prescription be filled in a pharmacy

  5         unless it is a drug dispensed by a physician

  6         assistant; providing that authority to dispense

  7         may be delegated only by supervisory physicians

  8         registered as dispensing practitioners;

  9         providing an effective date.

10  

11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

12  

13         Section 1.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (4) of section

14  458.347, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

15         458.347  Physician assistants.--

16         (4)  PERFORMANCE OF PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS.--

17         (e)  A supervisory physician may delegate to a fully

18  licensed physician assistant the authority to prescribe or

19  dispense any medication used in the supervisory physician's

20  practice unless such medication is listed on the formulary

21  created pursuant to paragraph (f). A fully licensed physician

22  assistant may only prescribe or dispense such medication under

23  the following circumstances:

24         1.  A physician assistant must clearly identify to the

25  patient that he or she is a physician assistant. Furthermore,

26  the physician assistant must inform the patient that the

27  patient has the right to see the physician prior to any

28  prescription being prescribed or dispensed by the physician

29  assistant.

30         2.  The supervisory physician must notify the

31  department of his or her intent to delegate, on a

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692
    588-1984-07




 1  department-approved form, before delegating such authority and

 2  notify the department of any change in prescriptive privileges

 3  of the physician assistant. Authority to dispense may be

 4  delegated only by a supervising physician who is registered as

 5  a dispensing practitioner in compliance with s. 465.0276.

 6         3.  The physician assistant must file with the

 7  department, before commencing to prescribe or dispense,

 8  evidence that he or she has completed a continuing medical

 9  education course of at least 3 classroom hours in prescriptive

10  practice, conducted by an accredited program approved by the

11  boards, which course covers the limitations, responsibilities,

12  and privileges involved in prescribing medicinal drugs, or

13  evidence that he or she has received education comparable to

14  the continuing education course as part of an accredited

15  physician assistant training program.

16         4.  The physician assistant must file with the

17  department, before commencing to prescribe or dispense,

18  evidence that the physician assistant has a minimum of 3

19  months of clinical experience in the specialty area of the

20  supervising physician.

21         5.  The physician assistant must file with the

22  department a signed affidavit that he or she has completed a

23  minimum of 10 continuing medical education hours in the

24  specialty practice in which the physician assistant has

25  prescriptive privileges with each licensure renewal

26  application.

27         6.  The department shall issue a license and a

28  prescriber number to the physician assistant granting

29  authority for the prescribing of medicinal drugs authorized

30  within this paragraph upon completion of the foregoing

31  

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692
    588-1984-07




 1  requirements. The physician assistant shall not be required to

 2  independently register pursuant to s. 465.0276.

 3         7.  The prescription must be written in a form that

 4  complies with chapter 499 and must contain, in addition to the

 5  supervisory physician's name, address, and telephone number,

 6  the physician assistant's prescriber number. Unless it is a

 7  drug or drug sample dispensed by the physician assistant, the

 8  prescription must be filled in a pharmacy permitted under

 9  chapter 465 and must be dispensed in that pharmacy by a

10  pharmacist licensed under chapter 465. The appearance of the

11  prescriber number creates a presumption that the physician

12  assistant is authorized to prescribe the medicinal drug and

13  the prescription is valid.

14         8.  The physician assistant must note the prescription

15  or dispensing of medication in the appropriate medical record,

16  and the supervisory physician must review and sign each

17  notation. For dispensing purposes only, the failure of the

18  supervisory physician to comply with these requirements does

19  not affect the validity of the prescription.

20         9.  This paragraph does not prohibit a supervisory

21  physician from delegating to a physician assistant the

22  authority to order medication for a hospitalized patient of

23  the supervisory physician.

24  

25  This paragraph does not apply to facilities licensed pursuant

26  to chapter 395.

27         Section 2.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (4) of section

28  459.022, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

29         459.022  Physician assistants.--

30         (4)  PERFORMANCE OF PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS.--

31  

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692
    588-1984-07




 1         (e)  A supervisory physician may delegate to a fully

 2  licensed physician assistant the authority to prescribe or

 3  dispense any medication used in the supervisory physician's

 4  practice unless such medication is listed on the formulary

 5  created pursuant to s. 458.347. A fully licensed physician

 6  assistant may only prescribe or dispense such medication under

 7  the following circumstances:

 8         1.  A physician assistant must clearly identify to the

 9  patient that she or he is a physician assistant. Furthermore,

10  the physician assistant must inform the patient that the

11  patient has the right to see the physician prior to any

12  prescription being prescribed or dispensed by the physician

13  assistant.

14         2.  The supervisory physician must notify the

15  department of her or his intent to delegate, on a

16  department-approved form, before delegating such authority and

17  notify the department of any change in prescriptive privileges

18  of the physician assistant. Authority to dispense may be

19  delegated only by a supervisory physician who is registered as

20  a dispensing practitioner in compliance with s. 465.0276.

21         3.  The physician assistant must file with the

22  department, before commencing to prescribe or dispense,

23  evidence that she or he has completed a continuing medical

24  education course of at least 3 classroom hours in prescriptive

25  practice, conducted by an accredited program approved by the

26  boards, which course covers the limitations, responsibilities,

27  and privileges involved in prescribing medicinal drugs, or

28  evidence that she or he has received education comparable to

29  the continuing education course as part of an accredited

30  physician assistant training program.

31  

                                  4

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692
    588-1984-07




 1         4.  The physician assistant must file with the

 2  department, before commencing to prescribe or dispense,

 3  evidence that the physician assistant has a minimum of 3

 4  months of clinical experience in the specialty area of the

 5  supervising physician.

 6         5.  The physician assistant must file with the

 7  department a signed affidavit that she or he has completed a

 8  minimum of 10 continuing medical education hours in the

 9  specialty practice in which the physician assistant has

10  prescriptive privileges with each licensure renewal

11  application.

12         6.  The department shall issue a license and a

13  prescriber number to the physician assistant granting

14  authority for the prescribing of medicinal drugs authorized

15  within this paragraph upon completion of the foregoing

16  requirements. The physician assistant shall not be required to

17  independently register pursuant to s. 465.0276.

18         7.  The prescription must be written in a form that

19  complies with chapter 499 and must contain, in addition to the

20  supervisory physician's name, address, and telephone number,

21  the physician assistant's prescriber number. Unless it is a

22  drug or drug sample dispensed by the physician assistant, the

23  prescription must be filled in a pharmacy permitted under

24  chapter 465, and must be dispensed in that pharmacy by a

25  pharmacist licensed under chapter 465. The appearance of the

26  prescriber number creates a presumption that the physician

27  assistant is authorized to prescribe the medicinal drug and

28  the prescription is valid.

29         8.  The physician assistant must note the prescription

30  or dispensing of medication in the appropriate medical record,

31  and the supervisory physician must review and sign each

                                  5

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 692
    588-1984-07




 1  notation.  For dispensing purposes only, the failure of the

 2  supervisory physician to comply with these requirements does

 3  not affect the validity of the prescription.

 4         9.  This paragraph does not prohibit a supervisory

 5  physician from delegating to a physician assistant the

 6  authority to order medication for a hospitalized patient of

 7  the supervisory physician.

 8  

 9  This paragraph does not apply to facilities licensed pursuant

10  to chapter 395.

11         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.

12  

13          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
14                         Senate Bill 692

15                                 

16  The committee substitute specifies the conditions under which
    a physician assistant may dispense medicinal drugs by:
17  
    -    Authorizing the supervising medical or osteopathic
18       physician to delegate to the physician assistant the
         authority to dispense medications.
19  
    -    Requiring the supervising medical or osteopathic
20       physician to be registered as a dispensing practitioner.

21  -    Specifying that a physician assistant is not required to
         register independently of his or her supervising
22       physician.

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  6

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.