Colorado § 12-280-122 - Limited authority to delegate activities constituting practice of pharmacy to pharmacy interns or pharmacy technicians - supervision ratio - final product verification - rules - definition.

§ 12-280-122. Limited authority to delegate activities constituting practice of pharmacy to pharmacy interns or pharmacy technicians - supervision ratio - final product verification - rules - definition.

(1) A pharmacist may supervise up to six persons who are either pharmacy interns or pharmacy technicians, of whom no more than two may be pharmacy interns. If three or more pharmacy technicians are on duty, the majority must be fully certified by the board in accordance with section 12-280-115.5 (2), and any pharmacy technician on duty who is not certified pursuant to section 12-280-115.5 (2) must have a provisional certification issued pursuant to section 12-280-115.5 (3).

(2) The pharmacy shall retain documentation verifying the training for review by the pharmacist responsible for the final check on prescriptions filled by the pharmacy technician and shall make the documentation available for inspection by the board.

(3) The supervision ratio specified in subsection (1) of this section does not include other ancillary personnel who may be in the prescription drug outlet but who are not performing duties described in section 12-280-103 (39)(b) that are delegated to the interns or duties described in section 12-280-103 (38.5)(a) that are delegated to the pharmacy technicians.

(4) (a) The provisions of subsection (1) of this section apply to a central fill pharmacy; except that a pharmacist may supervise up to eight persons who are either pharmacy interns or pharmacy technicians, of whom no more than two may be pharmacy interns.

(b) As used in this subsection (4), "central fill pharmacy" means a pharmacy, other than a pharmacy located in a hospital licensed pursuant to section 25-1.5-103, that is not a public-facing pharmacy and that only acts as an agent of an originating pharmacy to fill or refill a prescription.

(5) (a) A supervising pharmacist may delegate, and a pharmacy technician or an intern may perform under the supervision of the supervising pharmacist, tasks associated with the physical preparation and processing of drug, device, or product orders that are not for controlled substances.

(b) Final product verification tasks that may be delegated by the supervising pharmacist include:

(I) Verification of the prescription or drug, device, or product by a second pharmacy technician or intern concerning the work of the first pharmacy technician or intern;

(II) Use of barcode or other technology to verify each drug, device, or product prior to administration to an individual by a health-care provider;

(III) Verification by a second pharmacy technician or intern concerning the work of the first pharmacy technician or intern in the repackaging of drugs from bulk to unit dose; or

(IV) Other activities as authorized by the board by rule.

(c) In delegating final product verification tasks, a supervising pharmacist shall use the pharmacist's reasonable professional judgment and shall ensure that authorized tasks do not require the exercise of discretion or clinical judgment by a pharmacy technician.

(d) A pharmacy or other outlet shall have a continuous quality assessment system in place to periodically verify the accuracy of a final drug, device, or product, which includes a process for the recording and evaluation of errors that occur and potential errors, even if the errors do not reach the patient.

(e) A pharmacy intending to implement a final product verification program shall create and maintain a program plan, including how pharmacists' hours will be maintained and redirected for providing direct patient care activities.

(f) No later than December 31, 2026, the board shall adopt rules concerning final product verification by a pharmacy technician or intern pursuant to this subsection (5). The board's rules must include:

(I) Training requirements;

(II) Excluded medications;

(III) Liability issues; and

(IV) Any other rules the board deems appropriate.

Source: L. 2019: Entire title R&RE with relocations, (HB 19-1172), ch. 136, p. 1467, § 1, effective October 1; (1) and (3) amended, (HB 19-1242), ch. 434, p. 3753, § 10, effective October 1. L. 2023: (1) amended and (4) added, (SB 23-162), ch. 148, p. 630, § 3, effective August 7. L. 2026: (5) added, (HB 26-1336), ch. 236, p. 1361, § 3, effective August 12.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 12-42.5-119 as it existed prior to 2019.