Legislature(2025 - 2026)DAVIS 106
04/29/2025 03:15 PM House HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB195 | |
| HB52 | |
| HCR4 | |
| HB64 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 195 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HCR 4 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 64 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 52 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 195-PHARMACIST PRESCRIPTION AUTHORITY
3:37:42 PM
CHAIR MINA announced that the first order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 195, "An Act relating to the prescription and
administration of drugs and devices by pharmacists; relating to
reciprocity for pharmacists; and providing for an effective
date."
3:38:08 PM
CHAIR MINA, as prime sponsor, presented HB 195. She stated that
HB 195 would be a collaborative effort between the Alaska Board
of Pharmacy and the Alaska Pharmacy Association, and would
clarify pharmacists' right to independent prescribing, allowing
them to practice at the top of the training, education, and
experience. She emphasizes the limited access to healthcare in
Alaska, and the fact that pharmacists are prepared to help fill
gaps in access. She described the education and training
required by pharmacists, and the rights that other states have
provided pharmacists to prescribe independently.
3:40:38 PM
KATY GIORGIO, Staff, Representative Genevieve Mina, offered the
sectional analysis for HB 195 [hard copy included in the
committee file].
Section 1. Amends AS 08.80.030(b) Powers and duties of
the board.
to require that a licensed pharmacist who prescribes,
administers, or dispenses a controlled substance under
state law or federal law to a person in the state
register with the controlled substance prescription
database (PDMP).
Section 2. Amends AS 08.80.110 Qualifications for
licensure by examination.
to require that a pharmacist who holds a Drug
Enforcement Agency (DEA) number applying for licensure
(via examination) receive education in pain management
and opioid use and addiction, in alignment with other
practitioners in Alaska who hold DEA numbers.
Section 3. Amends AS 08.80.145 Reciprocity; license
transfer.
to require that a pharmacist who holds a DEA number
applying for licensure (via reciprocity) receive
education in pain management and opioid use and
addiction, in alignment with other practitioners in
Alaska who hold DEA numbers and pay the associated
fees.
Section 4. Amends AS 08.80.165 Continuing education
requirements.
to require a pharmacist who holds a DEA number and
renews licensure in Alaska meet continuing education
requirements including at least two hours of education
in pain management and opioid use and addiction in the
two years preceding license renewal, in alignment with
other practitioners in Alaska who hold DEA numbers. A
pharmacist whose practice does not include pain
management and opioid prescription, or administration
is exempt from this requirement.
Section 5. Amends AS 08.80.337 Other patient care
services.
(a)to clarify that a pharmacist may not provide
patient care services under a collaborative agreement
with another pharmacist.
Section 6. Amends AS 08.80.337 Other patient care
services.
(d) to clarify that "patient care services" mean
medical care services that include the prescription or
administration of a drug or device to a patient for
the purposes of curing or preventing a disease,
reduction of patient symptoms or for slowing the
disease progression.
Section 7. Amends and adds a new subsection to AS
08.80.337 Other patient care services.
(e) requiring that a pharmacist prescribing or
administering a drug or device under this section
recognize the limits of the pharmacist's education,
training, and experience and consult with and refer to
other practitioners as appropriate. This aligns with
standard of care and pharmacy regulation.
Section 8. Amends AS 08.80.480 Definitions.
(30) to clarify that the "practice of pharmacy"
includes providing patient care services in accordance
with AS 08.80.337. This includes patient care services
provided independently or under collaborative
practice.
Section 9. Amends and adds a new paragraph to AS
08.80.480 Definitions.
(40) adds to the definition of opioid to include opium
and opiate substances and opium and opiate derivatives
Section 10. Repeals AS 08.80.337 Other patient care
services (c) to align with clarifications in Section
6.
Section 11. Provides for an effective date of January
1, 2026.
3:43:48 PM
CHAIR MINA announced the committee would hear invited testimony.
3:44:04 PM
ASHLEY SCHABER, PharmD, Chair, Alaska Board of Pharmacy, stated
that HB 195 would align with the Alaska Board of Pharmacy's
strategic plan to promote community health and safety. She said
that HB 195 would be the result of work over several years,
spanning multiple Board of Pharmacy chairs, with its ultimate
goal being to increase access to care. She described House Bill
145, which passed during the Thirty-Second Alaska State
Legislature and expanded the scope of practice of pharmacists.
She added that the board has deemed it necessary to clarify the
expansion of statutory authorities given to pharmacists under HB
145. Dr. Schaber stated that HB 195 would encourage engagement
between pharmacists and other healthcare professionals and would
help maintain patient safety. She asked the committee to
support HB 195.
3:48:02 PM
BRANDY SEIGNEMARTIN, PharmD, Executive Director, Alaska Pharmacy
Association, testified in support of HB 195. She described how
pharmacists are deeply embedded in patient care, especially in
Alaska. She said that HB 195 would allow pharmacists to provide
a limited set of additional patient care services, including
prescribing and services within the bounds of their education,
training, and experience. She said that HB 195 would not be new
to pharmacists but would be following in the footsteps of
federal pharmacists' authorities, who have been allowed to
provide these same patient care services since 1979. She
emphasized that HB 195 would not allow pharmacists to practice
any services outside of their competency levels. She added that
closing the gap between pharmacists' education and their scope
of practice would help fight burnout. Dr. Seignemartin said
that HB 195 would prevent more patients from delaying care or
ending up in emergency rooms. She then listed the patient care
services that pharmacists would be allowed to practice under HB
195. She described the economic value of pharmacist-provided
care, explaining how it saves patients money without sacrificing
quality of care. She urged the committee to support HB 195.
3:55:58 PM
JEN ADAMS, PharmD, Associate Dean of Academic Programs, Idaho
State University, described her role within the Doctor of
Pharmacy program at Idaho State University. She described the
education requirements regarding prescribing practices for
Doctors of Pharmacy. She stated that pharmacy students across
the country are trained and qualified to provide the services
that would be authorized under HB 195. She described the
benefits seen by patients in Idaho, where pharmacists' scope of
practice has been expanded already. She shared an anecdote from
a patient who received care for a substance abuse disorder from
a pharmacist in Idaho. She said that authorizing pharmacists to
provide timely, evidence-based, patient care services would
increase access to healthcare, reduce the burden on emergency
departments, and improve health outcomes across Alaska. She
urged the committee to support HB 195.
4:03:04 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked why it has taken 46 years longer for
Alaska to expand pharmacists' practicing authorities than the
federal government.
CHAIR MINA directed the question to Dr. Schaber.
4:03:44 PM
DR. SCHABER explained that pharmacists within the federal system
are not bound by individual states' statutes. She said that the
goal of HB 195 would be to align Alaskan pharmacists' scope of
practice more closely with those in the federal system.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked about what circumstances a pharmacist
would prescribe schedule IA substances.
4:05:07 PM
CHAIR MINA read from page 2, lines 28-30, in Section 1 of HB
195, the section to which Representative Gray had referred.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY stated that in his experience, there is no
circumstance where a pharmacist would prescribe a schedule IA
substance.
DR. SEIGNEMARTIN agreed and presumed that this language was
taken from some other statute.
DR. SCHABER responded that the drugs identified in this section
are controlled substances under state law and that she has not
seen anything scheduled under these circumstances.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked about the collaborative practices that
were mentioned in the sectional analysis.
DR. SCHABER responded that collaborative practice refers to the
practice between a pharmacist and another practitioner to
prescribe services.
4:08:42 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE said that HB 145 was a bill he did a
lot of work on prior to being a legislator. He said that
collaborative practice could still occur under HB 195, in
addition to independent prescribing. He added that if a
pharmacist has prescribing authority, then they cannot be a
collaborating provider for another pharmacist that provides
those services.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked why another pharmacist cannot be the
collaborating provider for another pharmacist.
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE explained that the collaborative
provider agreement under HB 145 references the pharmacist with
some other kind of provider, to expand their collaborative scope
of practice.
4:10:53 PM
REPRESENTATIVE PRAX asked if pharmacists are trained on schedule
IA substances.
4:11:40 PM
DR. ADAMS said that medications classified under schedule IA do
not have a medicinal purpose.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY added that federal and state schedule
classifications are different.
REPRESENTATIVE PRAX asked if HB 195 would need to be amended to
address this.
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY [shook his head no].
4:13:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked what the scope of required
education would be under HB 195.
DR. SCHABER responded that the required education would be in
alignment with other providers that prescribe opioids so as not
to have any discrepancies there.
DR. ADAMS added that a Doctor of Pharmacy education would
include the training necessary to prescribe independently and
would be consistent with federal law standards.
REPRESENTATIVE SCHWANKE asked if a Doctor of Pharmacy degree
would meet the education requirement under HB 195.
DR. ADAMS said that that is correct.
4:16:31 PM
CHAIR MINA announced that HB 195 was held over.