§1202. Qualifications for licensure by examination

A. Qualifications. To obtain a license to engage in the practice of pharmacy, an applicant for licensure by examination shall:

(1) Be at least twenty-one years of age.

(2) Be of good moral character and temperate habits.

(3) Meet one of the following educational requirements:

(a) Have graduated and received a professional degree from an approved college of pharmacy.

(b) Have graduated from a foreign college of pharmacy, completed a transcript verification program, taken and passed a college of pharmacy equivalency examination program, and completed a process of communication ability testing as defined by the board in order to assure that the applicant meets the standards necessary to protect public health, safety, and welfare.

(4) Have completed a minimum of one year of professional experience through an internship or other program that has been approved by the board under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist, which service shall be predominantly related to the provision of pharmacy primary care and the dispensing of drugs and medical supplies, the compounding of prescriptions, and the keeping of records and the making of reports as required under state and federal law.

(5) Have passed all examinations required by the board.

(6) Have paid fees specified by the board for the issuance of the license.

(7) Have submitted to the board a completed application form supplied by the board.

(8) Have completed a criminal history record check as authorized by R.S. 37:1216.

B. Examinations.

(1) Due notice of all meetings for examination of applicants shall be given to all approved colleges of pharmacy in the state.

(2) The board shall determine the content and subject matter of each examination and approve the site and date of the administration of the examination.

(3) The examination shall be prepared to measure the knowledge of the applicant to engage in the practice of pharmacy. The board may employ, cooperate, and contract with any organization or consultant in the preparation and grading of an examination, but shall retain the sole discretion and responsibility for determining which applicants have passed such an examination.

(4) Examination scores shall expire one year after the date of the examination. Expired scores shall not be valid for licensure.

(5) An applicant who takes any board required examinations and is unsuccessful may repeat the examinations as administratively defined.

(6)(a) An applicant who takes any board required examinations or any examination or examinations in other jurisdictions and is unsuccessful for the third time shall not thereafter be eligible to take the board examination without satisfying the requirements of the board as administratively defined.

(b) An individual who has taken and failed the examinations more than three times may not practice as a pharmacy intern, as administratively defined.

(c) An individual who has taken and failed for the third time a comparable examination to the board's examination within another jurisdiction shall not be eligible to take the examination of the board without satisfying the requirements of the board as administratively defined.

C. Internship and other training programs.

(1) All applicants for licensure by examination shall obtain professional experience in the practice of pharmacy concurrent with attending or after graduation from an approved college of pharmacy, or both, under such terms and conditions as determined by regulation.

(2) The board shall establish such licensure requirements for pharmacy interns and standards for internship, or any other experiential program necessary to qualify an applicant for the licensure examination, and shall also determine the qualifications of pharmacists or other practitioners used in professional experience programs as determined by regulation.

D. Issuance of license. Upon successful completion of the requirements of Subsections A, B, and C of this Section, the board shall issue a license to the pharmacist within fourteen working days.

Acts 1999, No. 767, §1; Acts 2012, No. 357, §1; Acts 2018, No. 31, §1.