Florida Pharmacy Technician laws

[pharmalang]

Hi everyone 🙂

I found an old thread on SD where someone said they believed that FL law requires a course to be taken.
I am researching information about the Pharmacy Technician laws for Florida, and I found this article: http://www.pharmacytechnician.org/en/art/351/ It states that you only need one of the three requirements.

I just wanted to confirm with anyone who knows... Do I only need to take the exam? Is there an more updated FL law somewhere that I am missing? Thanks in advance!
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[kcwang]

I do not know the answer to that. If you happened to come across the answer elsewhere, it would be great for you to post the answer to your question here (as a reference for future SDNers) Thx =]

 

[dancingallday]

From my understanding, no, you cannot just take the test any more. Item number 2 in the link you provided applied to technicians who were working prior to January of 2010 and had more than 1,500 hours experience BEFORE that time. Item number 3 is very vague and unclear; as I understand it, you have to be given some sort of certificate by an agency ACCREDITED by PTCB or ICPT. This does not make it sound like just taking the test will fly.

What I would do is try to find a job at some sort of chain retail pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens, or a large grocery store chain like Publix. From what I've heard, they have programs that count for Item number 1 in your link. Some people pay $$$ for pharmacy technician courses; the tech just hired at our hospital took a course for $11,000.

 

[xtsukiyox]

trangalang, look up the state board of pharmacy. That will have the definitive answer.

That being said, I believe a course of training is required in addition to PTCE, but the courses offered by most major chains will suffice. Several Floridians have posted about it in the past.

 

[danderson]

I talked to a pharmacist about this the other day and he said the certification test is required in addition to the training. He said most people do the training on the job though. It's annoying because it seems as if no one wants to hire someone they have to train, even if you're certified..

 

[dancingallday]

trangalang, look up the state board of pharmacy. That will have the definitive answer.

Just to warn you, the Board of Pharmacy webpage for Florida is poorly laid out and the information is confusing, or at least it was the last time I looked. You'll most likely get clearer and better information on that link you posted than you would there. You can also call them and check for sure.

 

[pharmalang]

I went to the PTCB page to apply for permission to take the exam. However, in the application a required question asked where I was trained. Since I can't move on in the application I will go ahead and assume I can't take the exam without a course. Has anyone recently taken the exam without a course?

I'm actually confused though, because it says the requirements to take the exam are:
- High school diploma or its equivalent (e.g., a GED or foreign diploma).
- No felony conviction.
- No drug or pharmacy related convictions, including misdemeanors. These violations must be
disclosed to PTCB.
- No denial, suspension, revocation, or restriction of registration or licensure, consent order or
other restriction by any State Board of Pharmacy.
- No admission of misconduct or violation of regulations of any State Board of Pharmacy.

Still looking into it though. Just an update for everyone.

 

[danderson]

You don't need to be trained to take the test and I don't remember that question stopping my application progress. I can't remember exactly, but I think there was an option to say "not trained". I would suggest to mess around in the application a bit more, you may just be missing something..

 

[xtsukiyox]

Just to warn you, the Board of Pharmacy webpage for Florida is poorly laid out and the information is confusing, or at least it was the last time I looked. You'll most likely get clearer and better information on that link you posted than you would there. You can also call them and check for sure.

Gee, really? I googled the BoP website, clicked on Pharmacy Tech Apps and Info (middle & slightly to the right of the home page), then chose Pharmacy Technician Registration Application and Instructions. Seems to come up with a straightforward PDF, which leads me to believe that the course is the only thing required (FL doesn't appear to require certification, although I'm sure employers do). Supported by the FAQs section.

I am extremely hesitant to suggest EVER taking the word of a 3rd party source on requirements for licensure over the BoP website.

Since I can't move on in the application I will go ahead and assume I can't take the exam without a course.

They have added that question in since I took the PTCE. However, there is a way to do a dummy answer in there. At one point, I made a test account and got through that part by choosing something extremely vague - like "self trained" or something. I think there's a disconnect between the people who built the application and the administration at PTCE, because there is an FAQ somewhere that says you should be able to skip the question.

Anyway, my point is, PTCE does not require training to be complete beforehand.

 

[pharmalang]

Update:

After contacting the PTCB and Florida Board of Pharmacy, I found that you must take a course in order to be licensed. An alternative is that a company may hire you, then train you for certification.

I spoke to a few students in the Pre-Pharmacy society at my University as well. One of the members took the certification exam in 2010, but did not receive his certificate until 2011. He now has to take a course in order to work/be licensed because of the new law.

 

[hsb1104]

^^ yep. If you were not grandfathered in by December 2010 you have to take a course to become a pharm tech in the state of FL. My job made a huge deal of making us get in time because of that.