Rethinking pharmacy regulation: Core elements of Idaho’s transition to a “Standard of Care” approach

Abstract

The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy recently established a task force to explore the feasibility of developing regulations based on “standards of care” rather than “prescriptive rule-based regulation.” The Board sought to update its professional practice standards by transitioning from prescriptive regulations to a “standard of care” model that harmonizes pharmacists education and training with their legal scope of practice. In doing so, the Board expanded practice authority to include prescription adaptation services and independent prescribing of certain drug classes. As the Board approached how to update its facility standards, it pursued 2 primary goals: (1) Make the regulations practice- and technology-agnostic; and (2) Enable decentralization of pharmacy functions to offsite locations. The Board achieved its goal of reducing overall word count and restrictions in its laws. The Board also created a more permissive professional practice standard rooted in a “standard of care” approach that is more closely aligned with the regulatory model employed by the medical and nursing professions.