If you are a pharmacist or pharmacy technician, you are an important part of the healthcare system. You offer vital medications and advice that can make a big difference in people’s lives. However, with such responsibility comes a lot of scrutiny. The California Board of Pharmacy oversees your profession and ensures you follow strict regulations, laws, and ethical standards.

If you are under investigation or accused of something that could jeopardize your license, you may not know what is next for your career. Losing your pharmacy license is a big deal. It can ruin your livelihood and your professional reputation. Right now, you wish to know how to protect your license and what you can do to protect your career.

San Luis Obispo License Attorney focuses on defending pharmacists and pharmacy technicians at administrative hearings so you can feel prepared for the legal process. If you want to discuss your case, call us, and we will start building your defense.

The Valuable Roles Of Pharmacists And Pharmacy Technicians

The Role of Pharmacists

Modern pharmacists are medication experts with the responsibility to help improve patient outcomes in every healthcare setting. Pharmacists’ roles have transitioned from doing minor roles like filling prescriptions to more significant ones like: 

  • Support clinical care
  • Improve medication safety
  • Educate members of the public on important public health initiatives

As a pharmacist, you partner directly with physicians, nurses, and other healthcare providers. You are expected to manage and optimize medication therapies, particularly with the onset of chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension. These could involve the following:

  • How to choose medications
  • Ensuring the correct medication dosage
  • Avoiding adverse drug reactions
  • Educating patients on how to manage their disease and medication adherence

To stand out in this highly competitive field, you must attain a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree. The degree usually takes six to eight years, including undergraduate prerequisites and clinical experience.

Pharmacokinetics, pharmacology, clinical pharmacy, and pharmacotherapeutics are the focus areas in the Pharm.D. curriculum. Meanwhile, pharmacists are also increasingly specializing in pharmacogenomics. This involves how a patient’s genes impact how these medications react with their bodies. It also involves personalized medicine, which demands familiarity with the latest biotechnological therapies—biologics and gene therapies.

You may also help in the public health sector, such as vaccination drives and chronic disease management programs, especially in underserved communities.

The Role of Pharmacy Technicians

Pharmacy technicians work with pharmacists to prepare, dispense, and manage medications. Although your role in a pharmacy may not be as clinical as a pharmacist's, it is still essential to the continued functioning of any pharmacy. Under the supervision of the licensed pharmacist, you are responsible for working with patients to help them with their questions and concerns, labeling and packaging medications, maintaining inventory, and processing prescriptions.

With the scope of pharmacy practice continuing to expand, so is the scope of your role in completing more complex responsibilities, including:

  • Medication reconciliation
  • Administering vaccines
  • Handling more patient-centered tasks

A pharmacy technician takes a one- or two-year accredited training program. You learn technical skills like pharmacology and pharmacy law, which are needed to process prescriptions and ensure medication safety. Over the years, the technical demands of pharmacy technicians have increased thanks to pharmacy management software. You use this software in your daily activities.

Allegations That Could Cause You To Lose Your Pharmacy License

Several allegations could jeopardize your pharmacy license. Many things one can do, intentionally or unintentionally, can result in serious outcomes, which take effect through disciplinary measures or the revocation of your license. These allegations include:

  • Fraudulent activities. These include insurance fraud or misrepresentation. Other activities are:
  • Submitting false claims to health insurance companies for medications or services not provided. You could face charges under California Penal Code 550.
  • Unlawful distribution of prescription medications, punishable under California Business and Professions Code 4301
  • Forging or altering prescriptions, prohibited under California Health & Safety Code 11153
  • Selling controlled substances without a prescription against California Health & Safety Code 11352
  • mislabeling or misbranding prescription drugs
  • Substance abuse
  • Indiscipline cases and failing to follow regulations. These could include:
  • Failing to maintain proper records
  • Not conducting mandatory inspections
  • Failing to follow safety protocols
  • Personal misconduct, for example, is a criminal activity linked indirectly to your professional work. For example:
  • Being involved in money laundering schemes, particularly when handling cash transactions for controlled substances. You face penalties under California Penal Code 186.10.
  • Violating California Business and Professions Code 4059 by hiring or allowing unlicensed personnel to perform tasks that require a valid license

Disciplinary Guidelines Of The California Board Of Pharmacy

Understanding the standards and expectations for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and others in the pharmacy profession requires studying the California Board of Pharmacy's disciplinary guidelines. The guidelines specify grounds for disciplinary action, the process, and the penalties.

The California Board of Pharmacy categorizes violations into four main categories, ranging from less severe to most serious. Category I violations include record-keeping blunders or minor violations of practice standards. In contrast, Category IV violations involve serious misconduct, including felony convictions for drug abuse or unsafe practice. The Board assesses each category's minimum and maximum penalties based on the severity of the offense.

In addition, guidelines state that the licensing board might stray from standard disciplinary action. The age of the case or evidence of rehabilitation efforts may mitigate disciplinary actions. The board might increase your penalty for violations involving multiple offenses. When deciding, the board considers many forms of evidence, such as performance evaluations and proof of participation in rehabilitation programs.

Possible Disciplinary Measures

After you violate pharmacy practice regulations, the board uses a particular set of disciplinary measures. These could include:

  1. Suspending your license. License suspension signifies that your ability to practice pharmacy is temporarily revoked, allowing you time to address the issues that led to the suspension.
  2. Revoking your license. License revocation makes you permanently ineligible to practice pharmacy as a pharmacist or pharmacy technician.

The disciplinary process involves several steps, from investigating alleged violations to hearings. The Board considers the gravity of the offenses, their effect on patients and the general public, and past disciplinary history before deciding what action to take.

If you understand these guidelines, you can be better prepared for allegations you may face and better protect your professional standing.

Winning Your Administrative Hearing

If you violate pharmacy law, the California Board of Pharmacy will hold a formal legal proceeding called an administrative hearing.

  1. Filing the Accusation. After receiving a complaint from patients, colleagues, law enforcement, or insurance companies, the board investigates the case to determine whether it can stick. If the complaint is not within the board’s jurisdiction and does not meet the requisite threshold, the board dismisses it.
  2. Notice of Hearing. Before the hearing, both parties—the pharmacist and the board’s legal team—prepare their cases. This may involve gathering evidence, preparing witness testimony, and filing pre-hearing motions. Both parties can also request discovery, which allows them to access relevant documents or evidence from the other side.
  3. Hearing.  The board will notify you about the accusations against you and what will happen at your informal or formal hearing. A formal hearing is similar to a courtroom, where an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) presides over your case. The ALJ will run the proceedings to ensure both sides give their accounts.
  4. Pre-Hearing Preparation. Sworn-in witnesses from each side should appear and present their evidence. This allows you to defend what you have done, testify, and submit documentation as part of your position.
  5. Hearing. The hearing is a formal process where both sides present their arguments. It typically resembles a court trial but is less formal. The Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) presides over the hearing, where:
  • The board's attorney presents their case, introducing evidence and witness testimony.
  • The pharmacist (or their attorney) presents a defense, which may include their evidence and witnesses.
  • Cross-examination of witnesses takes place.
  1. Closing Arguments. After presenting evidence and witness testimonies, both sides can make closing arguments. These arguments summarize the evidence presented and persuade the ALJ to rule in their favor.
  2. Proposed Decision by ALJ. The ALJ records the hearing so that they can take detailed notes and an accurate account of what transpired. The ALJ will issue a proposed decision approximately 30 days after the hearing. The decision includes findings of fact, conclusions of law, and any proposed disciplinary actions, for example, suspension or revocation of the pharmacist’s license.
  3. Final Decision by the Board. The California Board of Pharmacy reviews the ALJ’s proposed decision. It can adopt, modify, or reject it. If adopted, the proposed decision becomes the board’s final order.
  4. Appeal. If you disagree with the board’s final decision, you can appeal the decision in the Supreme Court. During the appeal, the court reviews the administrative record and determines whether the board’s decision was legally correct.
  5. Compliance with the Decision. Once the decision becomes final, you must comply with any sanctions the board imposes. This could include license suspension, revocation, fines, or mandated corrective actions such as additional training or drug treatment.

Your case's success depends on how you can navigate through this process.

Factors That Determine Your Exact Disciplinary Measure

When determining the exact discipline for a pharmacy professional facing allegations, the board considers the following factors:

  • Nature and severity of the violation
  • Prior violations
  • Whether your violation was intentional, an act of negligence, or an honest mistake
  • Impact on patients’ safety
  • How regretful and accountable you are
  • Evidence of rehabilitation
  • Reputation in the pharmacy community, for example, professional achievements
  • Compliance with previous disciplinary actions
  • Mitigating circumstances like lack of prior disciplinary history or expert testimony

Admissible Mitigating Evidence

Admissible mitigating evidence allows you to provide a more comprehensive view of your professional character and conduct, potentially swaying the board's decision regarding disciplinary action. This evidence can help contextualize the violation and illustrate your commitment to the pharmacy profession and patient safety.

Types of admissible mitigating evidence are:

  • Proof of Continuing Education

Showing the Board that you are committed to continuing professional development can impact the Board’s perception of your commitment to pharmacy practice.

Certificates of completion from relevant courses or workshops can demonstrate your active effort to stay current with industry standards and rules. Continuing education shows you are willing to learn and want to prove that your practice remains as high as possible.

  • Letters of Recommendation

Letters from colleagues, supervisors, or mentors can be powerful endorsements of your character and professionalism. These letters can tell the licensing board of your contributions, ability to work collaboratively, and commitment to patient care.

In this case, it is advisable to build your defense by featuring strong testimonials from well-recognized professionals who could increase your credibility and position in the pharmacy sector.

  • Evidence of Rehabilitation Efforts

If your case was even about substance abuse or some personal challenge, it can help to show how hard you have been trying to rehabilitate. Examples of this may include treatment programs, counseling, or support groups you participated in.

Documentation of your commitment to recovery and personal growth can be a powerful tool when presenting to the board. This can help change the board's view from that of a 'hopeless case' to someone responsible for their actions and working to prevent future violations.

  • Documentation of Personal or Professional Challenges

If you have no control over these circumstances that lead to violations, it is important to document them. Medical, family crises, or significant life events could influence your professional behavior.

The power of context comes in offering grounds for what the board may conclude about your actions, wishing to state why leaving a wrong impression is not a circumstance resulting from your typical character but rather a result of difficult circumstances.

  • Evidence of Commitment to Community and Ethical Practice

Another avenue to take broadens the scope of potential success by showing how you have exhibited initiative with community service or involvement in professional organizations. Your involvement in volunteer activities or membership in pharmacy-related associations indicates your commitment to patient advocacy and ethical practice.

Contributions to the community can give you these examples of your dedication to the pharmacy profession. These can prove you are capable of the position you claimed in your community.

Contact a San Luis Obispo Professional License License Attorney Near Me

If you lack a legal background, it is hard to fight a misconduct allegation against you at an administrative hearing. The stakes are high, and you could lose your pharmacy license. You need an experienced license lawyer because the California Board of Pharmacy could revoke your pharmacy license.

We at San Luis Obispo License Attorney know the challenges of the administrative hearing process before the board. We are well-versed in representing pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and could help you prepare your case and present the strongest defense possible.

To protect your professional integrity and prepare your case, call us at 805-465-2766.