Especially in the age of COVID, the laws and rules of immunization vary from state to state and are subject to modification. In particular, to immunize in the state of Florida, you must hold a pharmacist’s license, complete an immunization certification program, enter into a protocol with a supervising, licensed physician and keep professional liability insurance. Namely, to get certified to administer immunizations and epinephrine in the state, the hormone and medication also known as adrenaline, your license to practice pharmacy must be legitimate and active. You also ought to finish 20 hours of an immunization administration certification program as approved by the Florida Board of Pharmacy.
As a pharmacist, you should follow a protocol under the supervision of a doctor with terms that adhere to your training and certification for immunization and a process and schedule must be set for a review of your practice. Additionally, you ought to maintain at least $200,000 of professional liability insurance. If you are an employee of a pharmacy, you need to secure permission in writing from the owner to immunize patients at his or her facility. In fact, the owner is to designate one certified pharmacist on staff to register and stay in charge of the pharmacy’s Florida SHOTS account, the state’s immunization registry.
When you are certified, you must report all immunizations you’ve administered to Florida SHOTS. If you are immunizing patients outside of a pharmacy, you should register with Florida SHOTS as an individual. To learn who will maintain such information on behalf of your pharmacy, you ought to consult the facility’s prescriptions department manager. If you are the designated pharmacist to update the pharmacy’s state registry account, you can visit the Florida SHOTS website at http://flshotsusers.com/resources.
At the same time, a registered pharmacy intern ought to follow similar requirements to become certified to administer immunizations and epinephrine in Florida. Interns must have active and legitimate registration statuses, complete 20 hours of an immunization administration certification program as approved by the state board of pharmacy and be supervised by a licensed pharmacist who, too, is certified to administer vaccines. They will have the immunization certification added to their registered pharmacy intern licenses, which will not be transferred to their future licenses to practice in the field of pharmacy. Instead, in the future, to be qualified to administer vaccines as licensed pharmacists, the interns will be called upon to turn in a new immunization administration certification application, fee and all supporting documents.
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