102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB0076

 

Introduced 1/14/2021, by Rep. Mary E. Flowers

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
225 ILCS 85/15  from Ch. 111, par. 4135
225 ILCS 85/15.7 new
225 ILCS 85/18  from Ch. 111, par. 4138

    Amends the Pharmacy Practice Act. Requires that at least one registered pharmacy technician be on duty whenever the practice of pharmacy is conducted. Requires that pharmacies fill no more than 10 prescriptions per hour. Requires 10 pharmacy technician hours per 100 prescriptions filled. Prohibits pharmacies from requiring pharmacists to participate in advertising or soliciting activities that may jeopardize patient health, safety, or welfare and any activities or external factors that interfere with the pharmacist's ability to provide appropriate professional services. Provides that a pharmacist shall receive specified break periods. Provides that a pharmacy may not require a pharmacist to work during a break period, shall make available a break room meeting specified requirements, shall keep a complete and accurate record of the break periods and may not require a pharmacist to work more than 8 hours a workday. Provides for enforcement and penalties. Provides whistleblower protections for an employee of a pharmacy if the pharmacy retaliates against the employee for certain actions. Requires pharmacies to maintain a record of any errors in the receiving, filling, or dispensing of prescriptions.


LRB102 03606 SPS 13619 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB0076LRB102 03606 SPS 13619 b

1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Pharmacy Practice Act is amended by
5changing Sections 15 and 18 and by adding Section 15.7 as
6follows:
 
7    (225 ILCS 85/15)  (from Ch. 111, par. 4135)
8    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
9    Sec. 15. Pharmacy requirements.
10    (1) It shall be unlawful for the owner of any pharmacy, as
11defined in this Act, to operate or conduct the same, or to
12allow the same to be operated or conducted, unless:
13        (a) It has a licensed pharmacist, authorized to
14    practice pharmacy in this State under the provisions of
15    this Act, and at least one pharmacy technician registered
16    under the provisions of this Act on duty whenever the
17    practice of pharmacy is conducted;
18        (b) Security provisions for all drugs and devices, as
19    determined by rule of the Department, are provided during
20    the absence from the licensed pharmacy of all licensed
21    pharmacists. Maintenance of security provisions is the
22    responsibility of the licensed pharmacist in charge; and
23        (c) The pharmacy is licensed under this Act to conduct

 

 

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1    the practice of pharmacy in any and all forms from the
2    physical address of the pharmacy's primary inventory where
3    U.S. mail is delivered. If a facility, company, or
4    organization operates multiple pharmacies from multiple
5    physical addresses, a separate pharmacy license is
6    required for each different physical address; .
7        (d) The pharmacy sets a prescription filling limit of
8    not more than 10 prescriptions filled per hour;
9        (e) The pharmacy mandates at least 10 pharmacy
10    technician hours per 100 prescriptions filled;
11        (f) The pharmacy places a general prohibition on
12    activities that distract pharmacists that includes:
13            (i) advertising or soliciting that may jeopardize
14        patient health, safety, or welfare; and
15            (ii) any activities or external factors, including
16        promotional requirements and productivity quotas, that
17        interfere with the pharmacist's ability to provide
18        appropriate professional services;
19        (g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
20    pharmacy provides a minimum of 2 15-minute paid rest
21    breaks and one 30-minute meal period in each workday on
22    which the pharmacist works at least 7 hours; a pharmacy
23    may not require a pharmacist to work during a break
24    period; a pharmacy that violates this paragraph shall pay
25    to the pharmacist 3 times the pharmacist's regular hourly
26    rate of pay for each workday during which the required

 

 

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1    breaks were not provided;
2        (h) The pharmacy makes available at all times a room
3    on the pharmacy's premises with adequate seating and
4    tables for the purpose of allowing a pharmacist to enjoy
5    break periods in a clean and comfortable environment;
6        (i) The pharmacy keeps a complete and accurate record
7    of the break periods of its pharmacists; and
8        (j) The pharmacy limits a pharmacist from working more
9    than 8 hours a workday.
10    (2) The Department may allow a pharmacy that is not
11located at the same location as its home pharmacy and at which
12pharmacy services are provided during an emergency situation,
13as defined by rule, to be operated as an emergency remote
14pharmacy. An emergency remote pharmacy operating under this
15subsection (2) shall operate under the license of the home
16pharmacy.
17    (3) The Secretary may waive the requirement for a
18pharmacist to be on duty at all times for State facilities not
19treating human ailments. This waiver of the requirement
20remains in effect until it is rescinded by the Secretary and
21the Department provides written notice of the rescission to
22the State facility.
23    (4) It shall be unlawful for any person, who is not a
24licensed pharmacy or health care facility, to purport to be
25such or to use in name, title, or sign designating, or in
26connection with that place of business, any of the words:

 

 

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1"pharmacy", "pharmacist", "pharmacy department",
2"apothecary", "druggist", "drug", "drugs", "medicines",
3"medicine store", "drug sundries", "prescriptions filled", or
4any list of words indicating that drugs are compounded or sold
5to the lay public, or prescriptions are dispensed therein.
6Each day during which, or a part which, such representation is
7made or appears or such a sign is allowed to remain upon or in
8such a place of business shall constitute a separate offense
9under this Act.
10    (5) The holder of any license shall conspicuously display
11it in the pharmacy in which he is engaged in the practice of
12pharmacy. The pharmacist in charge shall conspicuously display
13his name in such pharmacy. The pharmacy license shall also be
14conspicuously displayed.
15    (6) It is unlawful for any pharmacy or pharmacy's agent or
16representative to take any action against any person in
17retaliation for the exercise of rights under this Section. In
18any civil proceeding brought under this subsection, if the
19plaintiff establishes that he or she was employed by the
20defendant, exercised rights under this Section, or alleged in
21good faith that the defendant was not complying with this
22Section, and was thereafter terminated, demoted, or otherwise
23penalized by the defendant, then a rebuttable presumption
24shall arise that the defendant's action was taken in
25retaliation for the exercise of rights established by this
26Section. To rebut the presumption, the defendant must prove

 

 

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1that the sole reason for the termination, demotion, or penalty
2was a legitimate business reason.
3    (7) A person claiming violation of this Section shall be
4entitled to all remedies available under law or in equity,
5including, but not limited to, damages, back pay,
6reinstatement, or injunctive relief. Any person terminated in
7violation of this Section shall recover treble his or her lost
8normal daily compensation and fringe benefits, together with
9interest thereon, and any consequential damages suffered by
10the employee. The court shall award reasonable attorney's fees
11and costs to a prevailing plaintiff in an enforcement action
12under this Section.
13(Source: P.A. 100-497, eff. 9-8-17.)
 
14    (225 ILCS 85/15.7 new)
15    Sec. 15.7. Whistleblower protection.
16    (a) In this Section, "retaliatory action" means the
17reprimand, discharge, suspension, demotion, denial of
18promotion or transfer, or change in the terms and conditions
19of employment of any employee of a pharmacy that is taken in
20retaliation for the employee's involvement in a protected
21activity as set forth in paragraphs (1) through (3) of
22subsection (b).
23    (b) A pharmacy shall not take any retaliatory action
24against an employee of the pharmacy because the employee does
25any of the following:

 

 

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1        (1) discloses or threatens to disclose to a supervisor
2    or to a public body an activity, inaction, policy, or
3    practice implemented by a pharmacy that the employee
4    reasonably believes is in violation of a law, rule, or
5    regulation;
6        (2) provides information to or testifies before any
7    public body conducting an investigation, hearing, or
8    inquiry into any violation of a law, rule, or regulation
9    by a pharmacy; or
10        (3) assists or participates in a proceeding to enforce
11    the provisions of this Act.
12    (c) A violation of this Section may be established only
13upon a finding that: (1) the employee of the pharmacy engaged
14in conduct described in subsection (b) of this Section, and
15(2) this conduct was a contributing factor in the retaliatory
16action alleged by the employee. There is no violation of this
17Section, however, if the facility demonstrates by clear and
18convincing evidence that it would have taken the same
19unfavorable personnel action in the absence of that conduct.
20    (d) The employee of the pharmacy may be awarded all
21remedies necessary to make the employee whole and to prevent
22future violations of this Section. Remedies imposed by the
23court may include, but are not limited to, all of the
24following:
25        (1) reinstatement of the employee to either the same
26    position held before the retaliatory action or to an

 

 

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1    equivalent position;
2        (2) two times the amount of back pay;
3        (3) interest on the back pay;
4        (4) reinstatement of full fringe benefits and
5    seniority rights; and
6        (5) payment of reasonable costs and attorney's fees.
7    (e) Nothing in this Section shall be deemed to diminish
8the rights, privileges, or remedies of an employee of a
9pharmacy under any other federal or State law, rule, or
10regulation or under any employment contract.
 
11    (225 ILCS 85/18)  (from Ch. 111, par. 4138)
12    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
13    Sec. 18. Record retention. There shall be kept in every
14drugstore or pharmacy a suitable book, file, or electronic
15record keeping system in which shall be preserved for a period
16of not less than 5 years the original, or an exact, unalterable
17image, of every written prescription and the original
18transcript or copy of every verbal prescription filled,
19compounded, or dispensed, in such pharmacy; and such book,
20file, or electronic record keeping system of prescriptions
21shall at all reasonable times be open to inspection to the
22chief pharmacy coordinator and the duly authorized agents or
23employees of the Department. In addition, any errors in the
24receiving, filling, or dispensing of prescriptions of any
25kind, including any errors resulting in an adverse drug

 

 

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1interaction or adversely affecting the health of the patient,
2shall be a part of these records.
3    Every prescription filled or refilled shall contain the
4unique identifiers of the persons authorized to practice
5pharmacy under the provision of this Act who fills or refills
6the prescription.
7    Records kept pursuant to this Section may be maintained in
8an alternative data retention system, such as a direct digital
9imaging system, provided that:
10        (1) the records maintained in the alternative data
11    retention system contain all of the information required
12    in a manual record;
13        (2) the data processing system is capable of producing
14    a hard copy of the electronic record on the request of the
15    Board, its representative, or other authorized local,
16    State, or federal law enforcement or regulatory agency;
17        (3) the digital images are recorded and stored only by
18    means of a technology that does not allow subsequent
19    revision or replacement of the images; and
20        (4) the prescriptions may be retained in written form
21    or recorded in a data processing system, provided that
22    such order can be produced in printed form upon lawful
23    request.
24    As used in this Section, "digital imaging system" means a
25system, including people, machines, methods of organization,
26and procedures, that provides input, storage, processing,

 

 

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1communications, output, and control functions for digitized
2representations of original prescription records.
3    Inpatient drug orders may be maintained within an
4institution in a manner approved by the Department.
5(Source: P.A. 100-497, eff. 9-8-17.)