The maximum ratio of pharmacists to registered pharmacy technicians who may be on duty in a hospital, mail order, or long-term care pharmacy is determined by the pharmacist-in-charge. Regardless of the ratio, the following requirements must be met:

1. (1) Medication must be dispensed pursuant to a legal prescription;
2. (2) The technology must include tablet or product imaging or bar code scanning, to ensure accuracy in the prescription filling process;
3. (3) A role-based access software automation system that places stop points within the prescription filling process must be used, and the system must require a pharmacist's intervention before the prescription may move to the next step in the prescription dispensing process;
4. (4) Pharmacy software that screens and detects drug allergies, identifies drug interactions, and checks age-appropriate dosage ranges must be used;
5. (5) A pharmacist shall review clinically significant computer warnings of drug interactions, therapy duplications, and contraindications;
6. (6) Electronic surveillance technology must be used to control access or to provide continuous monitoring of all areas where drugs are stored or dispensed;
7. (7) All non-pharmacist personnel who input patient drug information into a computer or whose duties include receiving, packaging, or shipping of drugs, or who have access to any areas where drugs are dispensed, must be registered as a pharmacy technician in accordance with this chapter or be a pharmacy intern under chapter 20:51:02;
8. (8) In hospital and long-term care pharmacies, nursing personnel in facilities served by the pharmacy shall have telephone access to a pharmacist twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In mail order pharmacies, a patient shall have access to a pharmacist twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week on a dedicated pharmacist staff line;
9. (9) Drug information must be readily available to pharmacists;
10. (10) A quality assurance program that identifies and evaluates dispensing errors, accompanied by a continuous quality improvement program that assures dispensing accuracy, must be in place;
11. (11) The pharmacy must maintain written policies and procedures for all clerical, supportive, technical, and clinical pharmacy functions;
12. (12) There must be written policies and procedures for training pharmacy personnel, including ongoing training programs for all personnel and documentation of that training for each employee; and
13. (13) There must be a monitoring program designed to prevent diversion of controlled substances. The program must include perpetual inventory of all scheduled controlled drugs. Routine audits must be conducted by pharmacy personnel to review purchases versus dispensing of controlled drugs to deter and detect diversion.

Source: 36 SDR 21, effective August 17, 2009; 42 SDR 19, effective August 19, 2015 ; 50 SDR 138, effective June 2, 2024; 52 SDR 27, effective September 15, 2025 .

General Authority: SDCL 36-11-11 (1)(1 3) .

Law Implemented: SDCL 36-11- 2 ( 22 ) , 36-11-19.2 , 36-11-33 .

Prior versions effective: 2024-06-02, 2015-08-19, 2009-08-17.