N.Y. Education Law § 6801: Definition of practice of pharmacy

§ 6801. Definition of practice of pharmacy. 1. The practice of the

profession of pharmacy is defined as the administering, preparing,

compounding, preserving, or the dispensing of drugs, medicines and

therapeutic devices on the basis of prescriptions or other legal

authority, and collaborative drug therapy management in accordance with

the provisions of section sixty-eight hundred one-a of this article.

2. A licensed pharmacist may execute a non-patient specific regimen

prescribed or ordered by a physician licensed in this state or nurse

practitioner certified in this state, pursuant to rules and regulations

promulgated by the commissioner. When a licensed pharmacist administers

an immunizing agent, he or she shall:

(a) report such administration by electronic transmission or facsimile

to the patient's attending primary health care practitioner or

practitioners, if any, and, to the extent practicable, make himself or

herself available to discuss the outcome of such immunization, including

any adverse reactions, with the attending primary health care

practitioner, and to the statewide immunization registry or the citywide

immunization registry, as established pursuant to and to the extent

permitted by section twenty-one hundred sixty-eight of the public health

law; and

(b) provide information to the patient or, where applicable, the

person legally responsible for the patient, on the importance of having

a primary health care practitioner, developed by the commissioner of

health; and

(c) report such administration, absent of any individually

identifiable health information, to the department of health in a manner

required by the commissioner of health; and

(d) prior to administering the immunization, inform the patient or,

where applicable, the person legally responsible for the patient, of the

total cost of the immunization or immunizations, subtracting any health

insurance subsidization, if applicable. In the case the immunization is

not covered, the pharmacist must inform the patient or, where

applicable, the person legally responsible for the patient, of the

possibility that the immunization may be covered when administered by a

primary care physician or practitioner; and

(e) administer the immunization or immunizations according to a

patient specific order or non-patient specific regimen.

3. No pharmacist shall administer immunizing agents or injectable

medications for the treatment of mental health and substance use

disorder without receiving training satisfactory to the commissioner and

the commissioner of health which shall include, but not be limited to,

techniques for screening individuals and obtaining informed consent;

techniques of administration; indications, precautions and

contraindications in the use of agent or agents; record keeping of

immunization and information; and handling emergencies, including

anaphylaxis and needlesticks.

4. When administering an immunization in a pharmacy, the licensed

pharmacist shall provide an area for the immunization that provides for

a patient's privacy. The privacy area should include:

(a) a clearly visible posting of the most current "Recommended Adult

Immunization Schedule" published on the department of health's website;

and

(b) education materials on influenza vaccinations for children as

determined by the commissioner and the commissioner of health.

5. A licensed pharmacist may execute a non-patient specific order, for

dispensing up to a seven day starter pack of HIV post-exposure

prophylaxis medications for the purpose of preventing human

immunodeficiency virus infection, by a physician licensed in this state

or nurse practitioner certified in this state, pursuant to rules and

regulations promulgated by the commissioner in consultation with the

commissioner of health following a potential human immunodeficiency

virus exposure.

6. A licensed pharmacist may execute a non-patient-specific regimen of

insulin and related supplies to an individual who has a valid

prescription for insulin and related supplies which has since expired

within the last twelve months. The valid prescription must have been

prescribed or ordered by a physician licensed in this state or nurse

practitioner certified in this state. Execution of a

non-patient-specific regimen shall be on an emergency basis provided the

pharmacist:

(a) first attempts to obtain an authorization from the prescriber of

the patient-specific prescription and cannot obtain the authorization,

and the prescriber does not object to dispensing to the patient under

the non-patient-specific regimen;

(b) provides a refill of the patient-specific prescription and the

quantity of that refill is in conformity with the directions for use

under the patient-specific prescription, but limited to an amount not to

exceed a thirty-day emergency supply; and

(c) notifies, within seventy-two hours of dispensing the refill or

refills, the prescriber of the patient-specific prescription whose

authorization could not be obtained, that an emergency prescription of

insulin has been dispensed.

* 7. A licensed pharmacist is a qualified health care professional

under section five hundred seventy-one of the public health law for the

purposes of directing a limited service laboratory and ordering and

administering COVID-19 and influenza tests authorized by the Food and

Drug Administration (FDA), subject to certificate of waiver requirements

established pursuant to the federal clinical laboratory improvement act

of nineteen hundred eighty-eight.

* NB Repealed July 1, 2030

8. A licensed pharmacist within their lawful scope of practice may

administer injectable medications and medications required for emergency

treatment of anaphylaxis related to such administration, pursuant to

section six thousand eight hundred two of this article, for the

treatment of mental health and substance use disorder, as prescribed or

ordered by a licensed prescriber, acting within their scope of practice

in this state and in accordance with regulations, including but not

limited to regulations promulgated by the commissioner in consultation

with any other state agencies, as necessary.

9. a. A licensed pharmacist may execute a non-patient specific order

for the dispensing of self-administered hormonal contraceptives

prescribed or ordered by the commissioner of health, a physician

licensed in this state or a nurse practitioner certified in this state

pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the commissioner.

b. Prior to dispensing self-administered hormonal contraceptives to a

patient, and at a minimum of every twelve months for each returning

patient, the pharmacist shall:

(i) provide the patient with a self-screening risk assessment

questionnaire, developed by the commissioner of health in consultation

with the commissioner, to be reviewed by the pharmacist to identify any

known risk factors and assist the patient's selection of an appropriate

self-administered hormonal contraceptive; and

(ii) provide the patient with a fact sheet, developed by the

commissioner of health, that includes but is not limited to, the

clinical considerations and recommendations for use of the

self-administered hormonal contraceptive, the appropriate method for

using such hormonal contraceptive, information on the importance of

follow-up health care, health care referral information, and the ability

of the patient to opt out of practitioner reporting requirements.

c. No pharmacist shall dispense self-administered hormonal

contraceptives under this subdivision without receiving training

satisfactory to the commissioner.

d. A pharmacist shall notify the patient's primary health care

practitioner, unless the patient opts out of such notification, within

seventy-two hours of dispensing a self-administered hormonal

contraceptive, that such self-administered hormonal contraceptive has

been dispensed. If the patient does not have a primary health care

practitioner, or is unable to provide contact information for their

primary health care practitioner, the pharmacist shall provide the

patient with a written record of the contraceptives dispensed, and

advise the patient to consult an appropriate health care practitioner.

e. Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent a pharmacist from

refusing to dispense a non-patient specific order of self-administered

hormonal contraceptive pursuant to this subdivision if, in their

professional judgment, potential adverse effects, interactions or other

therapeutic complications could endanger the health of the patient.