Washington Legislature Passes Bills Related to Practice of Pharmacy

The following bills passed in Washington State’s 2012 legislative session and may be of interest to the practice of pharmacy.

HB1486 – This bill was reintroduced from 2010. The bill permits Washington State pharmacists to dispense controlled substance prescriptions written by out-of-state advanced registered nurse practitioners and amends RCW.69.50.101. This bill becomes effective June 7, 2012.

SSB5969 – This bill requires licensing authorities to establish procedures to expedite the issuance of a license, certificate, or permit to a person who:

• is certified or licensed in another state to perform professional services in that state;
• whose spouse or registered domestic partner is the subject of a military transfer to Washington; and
• has left employment in the other state to accompany the person’s military spouse to Washington State.

This bill became effective March 14, 2012.

SB6290 – This bill requires that a license of a spouse or registered domestic partner or service member be placed in inactive military status. The Washington State Board of Pharmacy will return the license to active status for renewal within six months after the service member is honorably discharged from service or sooner if requested. This bill was signed into law by Governor Chris Gregoire on March 16, 2012, and is effective as of June 7, 2012.

Additional details and updates on other bills are available on the Washington State Legislature’s Web page at https://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/.