California to Soon Become the First State to Allow Pharmacists to Prescribe Birth Control
A new law, passed in 2013 and expected to be fully implemented later this year, will allow pharmacists in California to write prescriptions for birth control.
According to a recent article by the American Pharmacists Association:
Under a new California law, women will be able to go to a pharmacy, get a prescription for birth control, get it filled, and walk out 15 minutes later. The law, SB 493, was passed in 2013. State health officials are now finalizing the regulations for the law to take effect. The California pharmacy board met on June 4 to review them, and the law is expected to be fully implemented later this year. The law also authorizes pharmacists to prescribe medications for smoking cessation and travel abroad. Pharmacists can administer routine vaccinations to children aged 3 years and older. They can order lab tests and adjust drug regimens for patients with diabetes, hypertension, or other conditions. "The pharmacist is really an untapped resource," says Lisa Kroon, a professor at University of California, San Francisco’s school of pharmacy. "We are graduating students that are ready for this, but the laws just haven’t kept up with what the pharmacist training already is."
Until the new law takes effect, please bring your existing birth control prescription to any of our convenient locations to be filled by an Owens pharmacist.