Pharmacy: Pharmacist Employer Advisory Task Force.

Existing law, the Pharmacy Law, provides for the licensure and regulation of pharmacists by the California State Board of Pharmacy in the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law authorizes the board to appoint an executive officer to perform the duties delegated by the board. The law requires each pharmacy to designate a pharmacist-in-charge, proposed by the pharmacy and approved by the board, who is responsible for the pharmacy's compliance with all state and federal laws and regulations pertaining to the practice of pharmacy. This bill would enact the Professional Pharmacist Integrity Act. The bill would create the Pharmacist Employer Advisory Task Force comprised of specified individuals, including the executive officer or their designee and various other designated representatives. The bill would require the task force to study and submit a report to the Legislature on the prevalence of management interference upon ability of pharmacists-in-charge to do their jobs, and any legislative recommendations for improvement. The bill would require the report to include, among other provisions, a survey of pharmacists-in-charge to determine whether they feel they have sufficient authority and autonomy to carry out their statutory mandate and an analysis of the past 5 years of board discipline to determine the extent to which nonpharmacist management interference contributed to wrongdoing. The bill would require the task force to submit its report to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature before January 1, 2022. The bill would repeal the act on January 1, 2022.