1. (a) Pharmacy Technician Trainees. Pharmacy technician trainees are not required to complete continuing education.

2. (b) Pharmacy Technicians.

   1. (1) All pharmacy technicians shall be exempt from the continuing education requirements during their initial registration period.
   2. (2) All pharmacy technicians must complete 20 contact hours of approved continuing education per renewal period in pharmacy related subjects in order to renew their registration as a pharmacy technician. No more than 10 of the 20 hours may be earned at the pharmacy technician's workplace through in-service education and training under the direct supervision of the pharmacist(s).
   3. (3) One hour specified in subsection (a) of this section shall be related to pharmacy law.

   4. (4) Pharmacy technicians are required to maintain records of completion of continuing education for three years from the date of reporting the hours on a renewal application. The records must contain at least the following information:

      1. (A) name of participant;
      2. (B) title and date of program;
      3. (C) program sponsor or provider (the organization);
      4. (D) number of hours awarded; and
      5. (E) dated signature of sponsor representative.

   5. (5) The board shall audit the records of pharmacy technicians for verification of reported continuing education credit. The following is applicable for such audits.

      1. (A) Upon written request, a pharmacy technician shall provide to the board copies of the record required to be maintained in paragraph (4) of this subsection or certificates of completion for all continuing education contact hours reported during a specified registration period. Failure to provide all requested records by the specified deadline constitutes prima facie evidence of a violation of this rule.
      2. (B) Credit for continuing education contact hours shall only be allowed for programs for which the pharmacy technician submits copies of records reflecting that the hours were completed during the specified registration period(s). Any other reported hours shall be disallowed.
      3. (C) A pharmacy technician shall not submit false or fraudulent records to the board.
   6. (6) Pharmacy technicians who are certified by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board and maintain this certification shall be considered as having met the continuing education requirements of this section and shall not be subject to audit by the board.

Source Note:The provisions of this §297.8 adopted to be effective December 23, 2003, 28 TexReg 11264; amended to be effective June 11, 2006, 31 TexReg 4640.