SB 185 - This act creates the Missouri Office of Pharmaceutical Reporting within the Department of Health and Senior Services. The Office will be responsible for monitoring the pharmaceutical records compiled by licensed pharmacists and pharmacies. An automated system will be implemented for purposes of collecting, storing, and tracking information. The Office will have the authority to hire more inspectors and conduct random testing of controlled substances.

A new Section 338.600 is created and requires all licensed pharmacists and pharmacies to maintain records of ordering, receiving, dispensing, or transferring controlled substances. The Office of Pharmaceutical Reporting has the authority to review, copy, or seize these records. The records shall be uniformly maintained and retrievable for three years. However, in an emergency, they will be immediately retrievable within forty-eight hours. The records will include, but not be limited to, the following:

Invoices verifying the ordering and receipt of controlled substances;

Documentation of controlled substances dispensed directly to the patient as well as any returned drugs;

Documentation of compounded controlled substances; and

An inventory of all controlled substances to be destroyed or returned to the vendor.

Pharmacists are required to notify and prepare a report to the Office of Pharmaceutical Reporting within forty-eight hours of any unusual or increased prescription rates, unusual types of prescriptions, or unusual trends in pharmacy visits that could signify a public health emergency. These reports can be made electronically or in writing and shall include the specific illness, patient's personal identification information, and the name of the reporting individual. The information contained in the reports is confidential and will not be disclosed, except upon the written consent of the affected individual. Any pharmacy or pharmacist in violation of the aforementioned will be guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.

Each pharmacy must display a sign concerning the reporting of prescription errors in a conspicuous location visible to consumers.
LORIE TOWE