West Virginia Scorecard

Grading Scale:
A – 85-100%, B – 70-84.9%, C – 55-69.9%, D – 40-54.9%, F – 0-39.9%

Grading Categories & Criteria

West Virginia Law

I. Laws
West Virginia Code
http://www.legis.state.wv.us/WVCODE/code.cfm?chap=30&art=5#05

CHAPTER 30. PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS.
ARTICLE 5. PHARMACISTS, PHARMACY TECHNICIANS, PHARMACY INTERNS AND PHARMACIES.
§30-5-1b. Definitions.
(31) “Pharmacy technician” means registered supportive personnel who work under the direct supervision of a pharmacist who have passed an approved training program as described in this article.
§30-5-4. Use of titles or terms; penalties and fines.
(a) It is unlawful for any person not legally licensed as a pharmacist, unless he or she employs a licensed pharmacist, to take, use or exhibit the title of pharmacist, or licensed or registered pharmacist, or the title of druggist or apothecary, or any other title or description of like import, or to label, mark, or advertise his or her or any other place of business as a pharmacy or drugstore or by the use of the words drug or medicines or any other compound or derivative of the same, or by any other word or sign indicating or intended to indicate that drugs or pharmaceutical supplies are either sold or offered for sale.
(b) It is unlawful for any person not legally registered as a pharmacy technician to take, use or exhibit the title of pharmacy technician, or any title or description of like import.
(c) Any person violating this section shall, upon conviction, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and fined not less than five hundred nor more than one thousand dollars.

§30-5-5a. Legislative findings; registration of pharmacy technicians; qualifications; training programs; rules and restrictions.
(a) The Legislature finds that it is in the best interests of the public health, safety and welfare that licensed pharmacists in this state be assisted with or relieved of certain tasks so that the pharmacist may counsel patients, improve pharmaceutical care and therapeutic outcomes. To achieve this aim, the board shall recognize and register pharmacy technicians.
(b) On or after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, any person practicing as a pharmacy technician in this state shall be registered with the board of pharmacy pursuant to the provisions of this section.
(c) In order to become registered as pharmacy technicians in this state, individuals shall:
(1) Be at least eighteen years old;
(2) Be a high school graduate or its equivalent;
(3) Present to the board satisfactory evidence that he or she is of good moral character, is not addicted to alcohol or controlled substances and is free of any felony convictions; and
(4) Satisfactorily complete a board-approved pharmacy technician training program.
(d) The pharmacy technician training program and its curriculum shall be designed to train individuals to perform nonprofessional functions as described in legislative rules promulgated in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
(e) Pharmacy technicians shall be identified by a name tag and designation as pharmacy technician while working in a pharmacy within this state. A ratio of no more than four pharmacy technicians per on-duty pharmacist operating in any outpatient, mail order or institutional pharmacy shall be maintained.

West Virginia Administrative Law
http://apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=17459&Format=WORD

’15-7-2. Definitions.
2.2. “Pharmacy Technician” means registered supportive personnel who work under the direct supervision of a pharmacist who have passed an approved training program.

2.3. “Pharmacy Technician Trainee” means an individual currently engaged in a pharmacy technician training program which has been approved by the Board and who is under the direct supervision of a pharmacist.

’15-7-3. Qualifications For Registration as a Pharmacy Technician; 20 Hour Training Program.

3.1. An individual who:

(a) has been employed in the State of West Virginia as a pharmacy technician for 2,080 hours prior to the effective date of this rule; or

(b) is a registered technician in another state; or

(c) is certified by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) may apply to the board for registration as a pharmacy technician and shall complete a 20 hour training program as outlined in subsection 3.4 of this rule and shall be exempt from the examination requirement set forth under subsection 4.6 of this rule.

3.2. If an individual does not qualify under subsection 3.1 of this rule, then the individual shall complete the training program as outlined in section 4 of this rule and pass the examination set forth under subsection 4.6 of this rule.

3.3. The applicant shall:

(a) verify his or her employment by submitting to the Board an affidavit of the pharmacist-in-charge certifying that the applicant has performed the duties of a pharmacy technician as defined in section 5 of this rule for 2,080 hours; or

(b) verify that he or she is a registered pharmacy technician in another state; or

(c) verify that he or she has been certified by the Pharmacy Technician Cerification Board.

3.4. The pharmacist-in-charge shall create a 20 hour training program regarding the drug dispensing process which shall include the following:

(a) the steps in receiving prescriptions;

(b) the creation of or updating of patient profiles;

(c) the entering of prescription information into the computer;

(d) the updating of files and the printing of labels;

(e) the pulling of stock packages from shelves;

(f) the checking of medications;

(g) the preparing of medications;

(h) refill procedures and regulations; and

(i) record keeping.

3.5. The pharmacist-in-charge must certify that the pharmacy technician trainee has adequately completed the 20 hour training program.

’15-7-4. Registration and Examination; 2,080 Hour Training Program

4.1. A pharmacy shall submit its pharmacy technician training program to the Board for approval prior to its use. The training program shall be outlined in a training manual which shall be used throughout the program. The training program shall, at a minimum contain the following:

(a) written procedures and guidelines for the use and supervision of pharmacy technicians. The procedures and guidelines shall:

(A) specify the manner in which the pharmacist-in-charge responsible for the supervision of pharmacy technicians shall supervise the pharmacy technicians and verify the accuracy and completeness of all acts, and functions performed by them; and

(B) specify duties which may and may not be performed by pharmacy technicians; and

(b) instruction in the following areas and any additional areas appropriate to the duties of pharmacy technicians in the pharmacy:

(A) Orientation;

(B) Job descriptions;

(C) Communication techniques;

(D) Legislative rules of the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy;

(E) Security and safety;

(F) Prescription drugs, including:

(1) Basic pharmaceutical nomenclature; and

(2) Dosage forms;

(G) Prescription drug orders, including:

(1) Prescribers;

(2) Directions for use;

(3) Commonly used abbreviations and symbols;

(4) Number of dosage units;

(5) Strengths and systems of measurement;

(6) Routes of administration;

(7) Frequency of administration;

(8) Interpreting directions for use; and

(H) Prescription drug order preparation, including:

(1) the creation or updating of patient medication records;

(2) the entering of prescription drug order information into the computer or typing the label in a manual system;

(3) the selection of the correct stock bottle and the accurate counting of or pouring of the appropriate quantity of drug product;

(4) the selection of the proper container; and

(5) the preparation of the finished drug product for inspection, labelling, and final check by pharmacists;

(I) Drug product prepackaging;

(J) the compounding of non sterile pharmaceuticals; and

(K) Written policy and guidelines for the use of and supervision of pharmacy technicians.

4.2. A pharmacy technician trainee shall complete initial training at a pharmacy as outlined
by the pharmacist-in-charge in the training manual, prior to the regular performance of his or her duties. The training shall consist of 12 months of full-time employment or 2,080 hours of employment within 24 months under the direct supervision of a pharmacist.

4.3. A pharmacy technician trainee shall notify the Board in writing within (30) days of starting to work in the pharmacy. The Board shall apply any hours worked by the pharmacy technician trainee during this interim period towards the 2,080 hours required for successful completion of the training program.

4.4. Within (24) months of beginning the training program, the pharmacy technician trainee must submit to the Board certification from the pharmacist-in-charge that the pharmacy technician trainee has adequately completed the training program. If the pharmacy technician trainee fails to complete the required hours within (24) months, the Board shall require the pharmacy technician trainee to begin a training program again with no credit given for any previous hours. The Board may provide an extension of time for completion of the training program upon the showing of special circumstances by a pharmacy technician trainee.

4.5. The pharmacist-in-charge shall document that the pharmacy technician trainee has completed the training program and certify the competency of each technician completing the training. The pharmacist-in-charge shall maintain a written record of the initial training of each pharmacy technician. The written record shall contain the following information:

(a) the name of the person receiving the training;

(b) the date of the training;

(c) a general description of the topics covered;

(d) a statement or statements that certify that the pharmacy technician is competent to perform the duties assigned;

(e) the name of the person supervising the training; and

(f) the signature of the pharmacy technician and the pharmacist-in-charge or other pharmacist employed by the pharmacy and designated by the pharmacist-in-charge as responsible for the training of pharmacy technicians.

4.6. Upon completion of the training program the pharmacy technician trainee shall apply for registration with the Board as a pharmacy technician and submit the registration fee of $25.00 and the examination fee of $25.00. A pharmacy technician trainee shall take a competency examination prepared and administered by the Board and obtain a passing score of 75%. If a pharmacy technician trainee fails to pass the examination satisfactorily, he or she is entitled at either the first or second succeeding examination conducted by the Board to a re-examination without paying any additional fees. If the pharmacy technician trainee fails the re-examination, he or she shall reapply for registration and submit the registration fee of $25.00 and the examination fee of $25.00.
’16-7-6. Identification of Technicians and Technician Trainees.

6.1. Pharmacy technicians shall wear a name tag approved by the Board which contains the designation “Pharmacy Technician” while working in a pharmacy within this State. The name tags shall contain lettering of a legible size. Pharmacy technicians and pharmacy technician trainees shall wear appropriate sanitary attire, other than a white coat.

6.2. During the period of training, a pharmacy technician trainee shall wear a name tag approved by the Board which contains the designation “Pharmacy Technician Trainee”. The name tags shall contain lettering of a legible size.

’15-7-7. Certificate of Registration; Transfer of Registration.

7.1. The Board shall provide a certificate of registration to a pharmacy technician trainee who completes the required training program and passes the examination, if required.

7.2. The registration of the pharmacy technician may not be transferred to another pharmacy unless:

(a) the pharmacies are under common ownership and control and have a common training program; or

(b) the pharmacist-in-charge of the pharmacy at which the pharmacy technician intends to work certifies that the pharmacy technician is competent to perform the duties assigned in that pharmacy.

The data contained in this 2012 Annual Scorecard are accurate as of December 2012 .  Because statutes and regulations are continually revised, the data are subject to change.  These data have been verified with the state board of pharmacy.  This scorecard is updated on an annual basis in order to incorporate statutory and regulatory changes.  A new scorecard will be issued in July 2013.

Scoring rationale for Education and Training:
In order to protect the public and help ensure patient safety, it is important that pharmacy technicians are properly educated and trained.  The most rigorous training is accredited training.  The sole entity empowered to accredit pharmacy-technician training programs is the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP).  Please note that this is “programmatic accreditation” – not “institutional accreditation.”  It is the content of the training program – as measured against established standards – that is being evaluated and accredited.  Accredited training is vital to protecting patient safety because it means that a pharmacy-technician training program has met established quality standards to provide assurance and confidence to the public.  For more information, please see http://www.ashp.org/menu/Accreditation/TechnicianAccreditation.aspx.

Scoring rationale for Certification:
Certification is the process by which a nongovernmental agency or association grants recognition to an individual who has met certain predetermined qualifications specified by that agency or association.  This is often determined by an examination process.  Numerous organizations have recommended that the certification exam conducted by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) should be recognized as the sole, nationally-accredited certification exam for pharmacy technician certification – including the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP), the Texas State Board of Pharmacy (TSBP), and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In a recent report, NABP recommended that states be encouraged to “recognize certification by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB).” Moreover, NABP performed a psychometric audit of the PTCB’s pharmacy technician certification examination (PTCE) in 2001 and determined that the PTCE is psychometrically sound, defensible, and valid. In May 2010, the TSBP awarded the PTCB with the Pharmacy Technician Certification Provider contract in Texas. PTCB was selected for the contract after a rigorous bidding and evaluation process that included formal reviews and evaluations from three independent psychometricians. TSBP confidently recognizes PTCB as the single provider of certification examinations for pharmacy technicians. In addition, in June 2010, the VA began requiring PTCB certification for VA pharmacy technicians employed at grade GS-6 and above.

Scoring rationale for Registration/Licensure:
Registration/licensure is the process by which the state maintains a list of all pharmacy technicians in the state and grants permission for an individual to work as a pharmacy technician in the state based on the applicant’s completion of all pre-requisites to registration/licensure – such as required training and certification.

Scoring rationale for Continuing Education:
Continuing education enables pharmacy technicians to fulfill their professional responsibility to maintain competence and up-to-date knowledge and skills in an environment of technological advances and increasingly complex, new medications and therapies.