NABP Launches Web-Based Interface to Assist Boards of Pharmacy in Reporting Facility Issues to HIPDB

February 28, 2011 1:05 PM

Originally published in the March 2011 NABP Newsletter

State boards of pharmacy now have the capability to report disciplinary actions taken against pharmacies and other health care facilities through a convenient Web-based interface developed by NABP. This online tool assists the boards in meeting requirements set forth by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration Division of Practitioner Data Banks. Implemented in 2010, these rules require state health care entity licensing and certification authorities, along with health care practitioner licensing and certification authorities, peer review organizations, and private accreditation organizations, to report adverse licensing actions taken since January 1, 1992, to the Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank (HIPDB) and National Practitioner Data Bank.

Launched in January 2011, the NABP electronic reporting tool allows boards of pharmacy that have designated the Association as their reporting agent to submit disciplinary actions taken against pharmacies and facilities directly to HIPDB. In addition, all boards of pharmacy are able to report pharmacy disciplinary action data simultaneously to the NABP Clearinghouse through this tool.

The pharmacy reporting capability is housed in the same secure, Web-based interface the boards of pharmacy use to manage candidate eligibility for the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination® and Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination®. With the enhancement of the eligibility management system to include HIPDB and NABP Clearinghouse reporting capabilities, boards of pharmacy have the option to search, query, store, and export available disciplinary data. Additionally, the user-friendly interface cuts down on the time boards must spend inputting disciplinary action data, by providing an organized electronic form to input data specifically required by HIPDB. As an added benefit, the system automatically responds to the board with an alert if an error or missing information is detected. To ensure that the boards obtain maximum benefit from the pharmacy reporting tool, NABP held two informational Webinars earlier this year, providing detailed instruction on using the system.

In a recent NABP survey conducted at the request of the Texas State Board of Pharmacy it was found that of the 25 responding boards, 76%, or 19 boards, currently report disciplinary actions taken against pharmacies to HIPDB. In addition, 80%, or 20, of the responding boards report actions taken against pharmacy technicians, and 100%, or 25, of the responding boards report actions taken against pharmacists. Currently 29 boards of pharmacy have designated NABP as their HIPDB reporting agent; however, all boards of pharmacy are encouraged to utilize the online tool to report pharmacy disciplinary actions to the NABP Clearinghouse regardless of whether NABP is their reporting agent. As an essential component to maintaining the integrity of the licensure transfer program among the states, reporting to the NABP Clearinghouse is required by the NABP Constitution and Bylaws. (See article on page 57 for more details on the NABP Clearinghouse 2010 findings.)

NABP plans to launch a similar reporting tool specific to disciplinary actions taken against individual pharmacists and pharmacy technicians during the second quarter 2011. This tool will replace the Access database tool the boards currently use. More information on reporting to the NABP Clearinghouse and how to designate NABP as a HIPDB reporting agent can be obtained by visiting the Member Services section of the NABP Web site located under Programs.