New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 8 - EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
Chapter II - Regulations of the Commissioner
Subchapter B - Regulation of Professions
Part 63 - Pharmacy and registered pharmacy technicians
Section 63.7 - Continuing education
Universal Citation: 8 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 63.7
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 12, March 20, 2024
(a) As used in this section, acceptable accrediting agency shall mean an organization accepted by the department as a reliable authority for the purpose of accreditation at the postsecondary level, applying its criteria for granting accreditation in a fair, consistent, and nondiscriminatory manner, such as an agency recognized for this purpose by the United States Department of Education.
(b) Applicability of requirement.
(1) Each licensed pharmacist, required under
article 130 of the Education Law to register with the department to practice in
New York State, shall comply with the mandatory continuing education
requirements as prescribed in subdivision (c) of this section, except those
licensees exempt from the requirement or who obtain an adjustment to the
requirement pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subdivision.
(2) Exemptions and adjustments to the
requirement.
(i) Exemption. Licensees who are
not engaged in the practice of pharmacy, as evidenced by not being registered
to practice in New York State, shall be exempt from the continuing education
requirements, as prescribed in subdivision (c) of this section, except as
otherwise provided in paragraph (c)(2) of this section to meet the education
requirements for the resumption of practice after a lapse in practice for a
licensee who has not lawfully practiced continuously in another jurisdiction
throughout such lapse period.
(ii)
Adjustments to the requirement. An adjustment to the continuing education
requirement, as prescribed in subdivision (c) of this section, shall be made by
the department, provided that the licensee documents good cause that prevents
compliance, which shall include but not be limited to, any of the following
reasons: poor health certified by an appropriate health care professional; or
extended active duty with the Armed Forces of the United States; or extreme
hardship which in the judgment of the department makes it impossible for the
licensee to comply with the continuing education requirements in a timely
manner.
(c) Mandatory continuing education requirement.
(1) During each triennial registration
period, meaning a registration period of three years' duration, an applicant
for registration shall complete at least 45 hours of formal continuing
education acceptable to the department, as defined in paragraph (4) of this
subdivision, provided that no more than 22 hours of such continuing education
shall consist of selfstudy courses. During registration periods beginning on or
after September 1, 2003, a licensee shall complete as part of the 45 hours of
formal continuing education, or pro-ration thereof, at least three hours of
formal continuing education acceptable to the department in the processes and
strategies that may be used to reduce medication and/or prescription errors.
Any licensee participating in collaborative drug therapy management pursuant to
Education Law section 6801-a, shall complete as part of the 45 hours of formal
continuing education, or pro-ration thereof, at least five hours of formal
continuing education acceptable to the department in the area or areas of
practice generally related to any collaborative drug therapy management
protocols to which the pharmacist may be subject, provided that such continuing
education shall not be completed as self-study. Commencing with registration
periods beginning on or after January 1, 2023, a licensee shall complete as
part of the 45 hours of formal continuing education at least three hours of
formal continuing education acceptable to the department in compounding. For
purposes of this requirement, the continuing education in the area of
compounding shall be consistent with current compounding standards as
determined by the department.
(2)
Requirement for lapse in practice.
(i) A
licensee returning to the practice of pharmacy after a lapse in practice, as
evidenced by not being registered to practice in New York State, whose first
registration date after such lapse in practice and following January 1, 1997
occurs less than three years from January 1, 1997, but on or after January 1,
1998, shall be required to complete:
(a) at
least one and one-quarter hours of acceptable formal continuing education for
each month beginning with January 1, 1997 until the beginning of the new
registration period, which shall be completed for a licensee who has not
lawfully practiced pharmacy continuously in another jurisdiction throughout
such lapse period, in the 12-month period before the beginning of the new
registration period; and for a licensee who has lawfully practiced pharmacy
continuously in another jurisdiction throughout such lapse period, in the new
registration period or at the option of the licensee in the period beginning 36
months before the commencement of the new registration period and ending at the
conclusion of such registration period; and
(b) for a licensee who has not lawfully
practiced pharmacy continuously in another jurisdiction throughout such lapse
period, at least 15 hours of acceptable formal continuing education in each
successive 12-month period of the new registration period; and for a licensee
who has lawfully practiced pharmacy continuously in another jurisdiction
throughout such lapse period, acceptable formal continuing education at the
rate of one and one-quarter hours per month during the new registration
period.
(ii) Except as
prescribed in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph for registrations therein
specified, the licensee who returns to the practice of pharmacy after a lapse
in practice in which the licensee was not registered to practice in New York
State and did not lawfully practice pharmacy continuously in another
jurisdiction throughout the lapse period, shall be required to complete:
(a) the continuing education requirement
applicable to the period of time the licensee was registered in the licensee's
last registration period;
(b) at
least one and one-quarter hours of acceptable formal continuing education for
each month of lapsed registration up to a maximum of 45 hours, which shall be
completed in the 12 months before the beginning of the new registration period;
and
(c) at least 15 hours of
acceptable formal continuing education in each succeeding 12-month period,
after such registration is reissued, until the next registration
date.
(iii) Except as
prescribed in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph for registrations therein
specified, the licensee who returns to the practice of pharmacy after a lapse
in practice in which the licensee was not registered to practice in New York
State but did lawfully practice pharmacy continuously in another jurisdiction
throughout the lapse period, shall be required to complete:
(a) the continuing education requirement
applicable to the period of time the licensee was registered in the licensee's
last registration period;
(b) at
least one and one-quarter hours of acceptable formal continuing education for
each month of lapsed registration up to a maximum of 45 hours, which shall be
completed in the new registration period, or at the option of the licensee in
the period beginning 36 months before the commencement of the new registration
period and ending at the conclusion of the new registration period;
and
(c) completion of the regular
continuing education requirement at the rate of one and one-quarter hours of
acceptable formal continuing education per month during the new registration
period.
(3)
Proration. If a registration period is less than three years in duration, a
licensed pharmacist shall complete acceptable formal continuing education at
the rate of one and one- quarter hours of continuing education per month for
such registration period.
(4) To be
acceptable to the department, formal continuing education shall be formal
courses of learning which contribute to professional practice in pharmacy:
(i) in any one or more of the following
curricular areas: pharmacology of new and developing drugs, or drug
interactions, or public health issues, or infection control, or sterile
procedures, or legal and regulatory issues, or patient counseling, or other
topics which contribute to the professional practice in pharmacy as such
practice is defined in section
6801 of the Education Law, or other matters
of health care, law, and ethics which contribute to the health and welfare of
the public; and
(ii) obtained from
a sponsor approved by the department pursuant to subdivision (h) of this
section.
(d) Renewal of registration. At each reregistration, licensed pharmacists shall certify to the department that they have either complied with the continuing education requirements, as prescribed in subdivision (c) of this section; or are subject to an exemption or adjustment to such continuing education requirements, as prescribed in subdivision (b) of this section.
(e) Conditional registration.
(1) The department shall issue a conditional
registration to a licensee who attests to or admits to noncompliance with the
continuing education requirements of this section, provided that such licensee
meets the following requirements:
(i) the
licensee agrees to remedy such deficiency within the conditional registration
period;
(ii) the licensee agrees to
complete the regular continuing education requirement at the rate of one and
one-quarter hours of acceptable formal continuing education per month during
such conditional registration period; and
(iii) the licensee agrees to complete
additional continuing education during such conditional registration period,
which the department may require to ensure the licensee's proper delivery of
pharmaceutical care consistent with the licensee's practice of
pharmacy.
(2) The
duration of such conditional registration shall not exceed one year and shall
not be renewed or extended.
(f) Licensee records. Each licensee subject to this section shall maintain, or ensure access by the department to, a record of completed continuing education which includes: the title of the program, the number of hours completed, the sponsor's name and any identifying number, attendance verification, and the date and location of the program. Such records shall be retained for at least six years from the date of completion of the program and shall be available for review by the department in the administration of the requirements of this section.
(g) Measurement of continuing education study. Continuing education credit shall be granted only for formal programs of learning that meet the requirements set forth in subdivision (c) of this section. A minimum of 50 minutes of study shall equal one hour of continuing education credit. For credit-bearing university or college courses, each semester-hour of credit shall equal 15 hours of continuing education credit, and each quarter-hour of credit shall equal 10 hours of continuing education credit.
(h) Sponsor approval.
(1) To be approved by the department,
sponsors of continuing education to licensed pharmacists shall meet the
requirements of either paragraph (2) or (3) of this subdivision.
(2) The department shall deem approved as a
sponsor of continuing education to licensed pharmacists:
(i) a sponsor of continuing education that is
approved by the American Council on Pharmaceutical Education or an equivalent
organization determined by the State Board for Pharmacy to have equivalent
standards for approving sponsors of continuing education for professionals
regulated by title VIII of the Education Law; or
(ii) a postsecondary institution for courses
in programs that are registered pursuant to Part 52 of this Title or in
equivalent programs that are accredited by an acceptable accrediting
agency.
(3) Department
review of sponsors.
(i) The department shall
conduct a review of sponsors that apply for approval to offer continuing
education to licensed pharmacists and that are not deemed approved pursuant to
the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subdivision.
(ii) Organizations desiring to offer
continuing education based upon a department re view under this paragraph shall
submit, with the fee as set forth in subdivision (i) of this section, an
application for advance approval as a sponsor at least 90 days prior to the
date for the commencement of such continuing education that documents that the
organization:
(a) will offer courses of study
in any one or more of the following curricular areas: pharmacology of new and
developing drugs, or drug interactions, or public health issues, or infection
control, or sterile procedures, or legal and regulatory issues, or patient
counseling, or other topics which contribute to the professional practice in
pharmacy as such practice is defined in section
6801 of the Education Law, or other matters
of health care, law, and ethics which contribute to the health and welfare of
the public;
(b) is an organized
educational entity, including but not limited to, a college of pharmacy; or a
national, State, or local pharmacy association; or a hospital or health
maintenance organization;
(c)
provides course instructors who are qualified to teach the courses which will
be offered, including but not limited to, faculty of a college of pharmacy
accredited by an acceptable accrediting agency; or instructors who are
authorities in the health sciences specially qualified, in the opinion of the
State Board of Pharmacy, to conduct such courses;
(d) has a method of assessing the learning of
participants, and describes such method; and
(e) will maintain records for at least six
years from the date of completion of coursework, which shall include, but shall
not be limited to, the name and curriculum vitae of the faculty, a record of
attendance of licensed pharmacists in such course work, an outline of the
course of instruction, date and location of the coursework, and the number of
hours for completion of the coursework. In the event an approved sponsor
discontinues operation, the governing body of such sponsor shall notify the
department and shall transfer all such records as directed by the
department.
(iii)
Sponsors that are approved by the department pursuant to the requirements of
this paragraph shall be approved for a three-year term.
(iv) The department may conduct site visits
of or request information from a sponsor approved pursuant to the requirements
of this paragraph to ensure compliance with such requirements, and a sponsor
shall cooperate with the department in permitting such site visits and in
providing such information.
(v) A
determination by the department that a sponsor approved pursuant to the
requirements of this paragraph is not meeting the standards set forth in this
paragraph shall result in the denial or termination of the approved status of
the sponsor.
(i) Fees.
(1) At the beginning of each registration
period, a mandatory continuing education fee of $45 shall be collected from
licensees engaged in the practice of pharmacy in New York State, except for
those exempt from the requirement pursuant to subparagraph (b)(2)(i) of this
section. This fee shall be in addition to the registration fee required by
section
6805 of the Education Law.
(2) Licensees applying for a conditional
registration, pursuant to the requirements of subdivision (e) of this section,
shall pay a fee that is the same as and in addition to, the fee for the
triennial registration required by section
6805 of the Education Law. In addition,
such licensees shall pay the $45 mandatory continuing education fee.
(3) Organizations desiring to offer
continuing education to licensed pharmacists based upon a department review,
pursuant to paragraph (h)(3) of this section, shall submit an application fee
of $900 with its application for the issuance of a permit from the department
to become an approved sponsor of a formal continuing education program.
Application for a three-year renewal of the permit shall be accompanied by a
fee of $900.
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