Mid-Atlantic Health Law TOPICS

PAs Dispensing Drugs: Did you know that physician assistants can now dispense drugs in Maryland? Physician assistants can now apply for the advanced duty of dispensing prescription medications, meaning with approval from the Maryland Board of Physicians, physician assistants can now prepare and deliver prescription drugs to patients in physician practices and other clinical settings. 

To apply for this advanced duty, the physician assistant must have: (1) practiced under the supervision of his or her primary supervising physician for at least 90 days; (2) operated for one year under a delegation agreement that grants the physician assistant prescriptive authority; (3) dispensed prescription drugs at least 25 times under the direct, in-person supervision of the primary supervising physician, who possesses an active dispensing permit; and (4) demonstrated to the primary supervising physician a basic knowledge of the statutes and regulations governing the practice of dispensing prescription drugs. The drugs dispensed by the physician assistant must also be within the physician assistant’s supervising physician’s scope of practice and within the scope of the physician assistant’s delegation agreement.

Collaborative Care Model: Did you know that the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) is implementing a collaborative care model pilot program for substance use and mental health treatment, in which care is provided by a collaborative team, including the primary care provider, nurses, clinical social workers and psychologists. The Maryland pilot program is open to primary care settings in which health care services are provided to those enrolled in HealthChoice, the state’s mandatory managed care program. MDH will select up to three sites at which the collaborative care model will be established over a four-year period.

Barry Rosen
(410) 576-4224 • brosen@gfrlaw.com