§ 20-638a — Admission of pharmacists and pharmacy interns. Referral to department. Notification of disciplinary action against program participants. Recordkeeping and confidentiality. Annual reports and audit.

(a) Any pharmacist or pharmacy intern may access the assistance program, provided the assistance program: (1) Satisfies the requirements established in this section; and (2) includes at least one medical review committee that satisfies the requirements established in subsections (b) to (h), inclusive, of this section. (b) (1) Prior to admitting any pharmacist or pharmacy intern into the assistance program, a medical review committee shall: (A) Determine whether such pharmacist or pharmacy intern is an appropriate candidate for rehabilitation and participation in such program; and (B) establish the terms and conditions for such pharmacist's or pharmacy intern's participation in such program. (2) No action taken by a medical review committee pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection shall be construed as the practice of medicine or mental health care. (c) (1) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, a medical review committee shall not admit into the assistance program any pharmacist or pharmacy intern who: (A) Has any pending disciplinary charges, prior history of disciplinary action or consent order issued by any professional licensing, registering or disciplinary body; (B) has been charged with, or convicted of, (i) any felony under the laws of this state, or (ii) any offense committed outside of this state that, if committed within this state, would constitute a felony under the laws of this state; or (C) is alleged to have harmed a patient. (2) A medical review committee shall refer any pharmacist or pharmacy intern who satisfies the criteria established in subdivision (1) of this subsection to the Department of Consumer Protection, and shall submit to the department all records and files maintained by such committee concerning such pharmacist or pharmacy intern. Such referral may include the medical review committee's recommendations concerning which intervention, referral assistance, rehabilitation or support services are appropriate for such pharmacist or pharmacy intern. (d) (1) The assistance program shall regularly review the sources of information available to such program to determine whether, and a pharmacist or pharmacy intern participating in such program shall immediately send notice to such program if: (A) Any disciplinary charges are filed against such pharmacist or pharmacy intern; (B) any professional licensing, registering or disciplinary body takes any disciplinary action against such pharmacist or pharmacy intern; or (C) such pharmacist or pharmacy intern is charged with, or convicted of, (i) any felony under the laws of this state, or (ii) any offense committed outside of this state that, if committed within this state, would constitute a felony under the laws of this state. (2) Upon determining that a pharmacist or pharmacy intern satisfies the criteria established in, or receiving any notice sent by a pharmacist or pharmacy intern pursuant to, subdivision (1) of this subsection, the assistance program shall refer the pharmacist or pharmacy intern to the Department of Consumer Protection and submit to the department all records and files maintained by the assistance program concerning such pharmacist or pharmacy intern. (e) The assistance program shall refer a pharmacist or pharmacy intern to the Department of Consumer Protection, and shall submit to the department all records and files maintained by such program concerning the pharmacist or pharmacy intern, if: (1) The assistance program determines that such pharmacist or pharmacy intern (A) is unable to practice such pharmacist's or pharmacy intern's profession with skill and safety or poses a threat to the health and safety of any person or patient in the health care or pharmacy setting, and (B) does not refrain from practicing such pharmacist's or pharmacy intern's profession or fails to participate in a recommended program of rehabilitation; or (2) such pharmacist or pharmacy intern fails to comply with the terms or conditions of, or refuses to participate in, the assistance program. (f) Upon receiving a referral under subdivision (2) of subsection (c) of this section, subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of this section, subsection (e) of this section or subparagraph (A) of subdivision (3) of subsection (e) of section 19a-12b , the Department of Consumer Protection shall determine if the pharmacist or pharmacy intern is eligible to participate in, or continue participating in, the assistance program and whether such participation shall be treated as confidential as set forth in subsection (h) of this section. The Department of Consumer Protection may seek the advice of the assistance program and professional health care societies or organizations in determining which intervention, referral assistance, rehabilitation or support services are appropriate for the pharmacist or pharmacy intern. If the Department of Consumer Protection determines that the pharmacist or pharmacy intern is an appropriate candidate for confidential participation in the assistance program, and such pharmacist or pharmacy intern participates in such program in accordance with the terms agreed upon by such program, the department and such pharmacist or pharmacy intern, the entire record of the referral and investigation of such pharmacist or pharmacy intern shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed, except at the request of such pharmacist or pharmacy intern, for the duration of such pharmacist's or pharmacy intern's participation in, and following successful completion of, such assistance program. (g) Upon written notice to the Department of Consumer Protection by the oversight committee that the assistance program is in compliance with a corrective action plan developed pursuant to subdivision (2) of subsection (e) of section 19a-12b , the department may refer pharmacists and pharmacy interns to the assistance program for continued intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services and shall submit to the assistance program all records and files concerning such pharmacists and pharmacy interns. (h) (1) All information given or received in connection with any intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services provided by the assistance program pursuant to this section, including, but not limited to, the identity of any pharmacist or pharmacy intern seeking or receiving such intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services, shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed: (A) To any third person or entity, unless such disclosure is reasonably necessary for the purposes of (i) such intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services, or (ii) an audit conducted in accordance with subsection (j) of this section; or (B) in any civil or criminal case or proceeding or in any administrative or other legal proceeding unless (i) the pharmacist or pharmacy intern seeking or obtaining such intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services waives such confidentiality, or (ii) such disclosure is otherwise required by law. (2) Except as provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection, no person shall request or require in any civil or criminal case or proceeding, or in any administrative or other legal proceeding, disclosure of any information given or received in connection with the intervention, rehabilitation, referral assistance or support services provided pursuant to this section. (3) The proceedings of a medical review committee shall not be subject to discovery or introduced into evidence in any civil action for or against a pharmacist or pharmacy intern arising out of matters that are subject to evaluation and review by such committee, and no person who was in attendance at such proceedings shall be permitted or required to testify in any such civil action as to the content of such proceedings. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to preclude in any civil action: (A) The use of any writing recorded independently of such proceedings; (B) the testimony of any person concerning such person's knowledge, acquired independently of such proceedings, about the facts that form the basis for instituting such civil action; (C) arising out of allegations of patient harm caused by health care or pharmacy services rendered by a pharmacist or pharmacy intern who, at the time such services were rendered, had been requested to refrain from practicing such pharmacist's or pharmacy intern's profession or whose practice of such profession was restricted, the disclosure of such request to refrain from practicing or such restriction; or (D) against a pharmacist or pharmacy intern, disclosure of the fact that the pharmacist or pharmacy intern participated in the assistance program, the dates of participation, the reason for participation and confirmation of successful completion of the assistance program, provided a court of competent jurisdiction has determined that good cause exists for such disclosure after (i) notification to such pharmacist or pharmacy intern of the request for such disclosure, and (ii) a hearing concerning such disclosure at the request of any party, and provided further, the court imposes appropriate safeguards against unauthorized disclosure or publication of such information. (4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prevent the assistance program from disclosing any information in connection with any administrative proceeding related to the imposition of any disciplinary action against any pharmacist or pharmacy intern whom the assistance program refers to the Department of Consumer Protection pursuant to subdivision (2) of subsection (c) of this section, subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of this section, subsection (e) of this section or subparagraph (A) of subdivision (3) of subsection (e) of section 19a-12b . (i) (1) The assistance program shall report annually to the appropriate professional licensing or registering board or commission or, in the absence of such board or commission, to the Department of Consumer Protection: (A) On the number of pharmacists and pharmacy interns participating in the assistance program who are under the jurisdiction of such board or commission or, in the absence of such board or commission, the Department of Consumer Protection; (B) the purposes for participating in the assistance program; and (C) whether participants are practicing their profession with skill and safety, and without posing a threat to the health and safety of any person or patient, in the health care or pharmacy setting. (2) On or before December thirty-first, annually, the assistance program shall report the information described in subdivision (1) of this subsection to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to general law, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a . (j) (1) If the Department of Public Health notifies the Department of Consumer Protection that the Department of Public Health has waived the annual audit requirement established in subsection (l) of section 19a-12a , the Department of Consumer Protection may require an audit of the assistance program for the year that is the subject of such waiver for the purposes of examining the quality control of such program and ensuring compliance with the requirements established in this section. Each audit conducted pursuant to this subsection shall: (A) Be conducted on the premises of the assistance program by an auditor (i) who has been selected by the assistance program, and (ii) whom the assistance program and the Department of Consumer Protection have jointly determined is qualified to conduct such audit; and (B) consist of a random sampling of at least twenty per cent of the assistance program's files for pharmacists and pharmacy interns or ten such files, whichever is greater. (2) Prior to conducting an audit pursuant to this subsection, the auditor shall agree, in writing: (A) Not to copy any of the assistance program's files or records; (B) not to remove any of the assistance program's files or records from the premises of such program; (C) to destroy all personally identifying information about pharmacists and pharmacy interns participating in the assistance program upon completion of the audit; (D) not to disclose any personally identifying information about any pharmacist or pharmacy intern participating in the assistance program to any person or entity other than a person employed by the assistance program who is authorized by such program to receive such disclosure; and (E) not to disclose in any audit report any personally identifying information about any pharmacist or pharmacy intern participating in the assistance program. (3) Upon completion of an audit conducted pursuant to this subsection, the auditor shall submit a written audit report to the assistance program, the Department of Consumer Protection, the Professional Assistance Oversight Committee established under section 19a-12b , and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to general law, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a . See Secs. 19a-12a to 19a-12e, inclusive, for similar provisions re health care professionals.

Legislative History

(P.A. 23-204, S. 252.)