Minnesota Board of Pharmacy - Minnesota State Legislature

Additionally, through the PMP, individuals engaged in potentially unlawful possession and/or diversion
of controlled substances have also been identified. Law enforcement officials have served more than
100 search warrants on the PMP, requesting an individual’s controlled substance prescription history to
support an investigation.
The PMP is not funded through General Fund tax revenues. Instead, it is funded through the licensing
fees collected by the Board of Pharmacy and by the boards that license healthcare professionals who
are authorized by law to prescribe controlled substances. In addition, the Board has received nearly
$800 thousand dollars in federal grants (which were first authorized by the Bush Administration and
later reauthorized by the Obama Administration). The Board has also received $39,000 in grants from
the National Association of State Controlled Substances Authorities.
General administration of the agency
Minnesota Statutes §214.04, subd. 3 states, in part, that the “executive director of each health-related
board . . . shall be the chief administrative officer for the board but shall not be a member of the board.
The executive director . . . shall maintain the records of the board, account for all fees received by it,
supervise and direct employees servicing the board, and perform other services as directed by the
board”. Consequently, the Board’s Executive Director, assisted by the Office Manager, performs the
tasks that are necessary for the general administration of the agency. These tasks include: developing a
budget to be submitted to the Board, the Governor and the Legislature for approval; ensuring that
Board expenditures are in line with the approved budget; ensuring that state procurement and
contracting rules are followed; managing Board staff members; enforcing state personnel policies;
maintaining the Board’s records and other tasks as necessary to ensure the smooth daily operation of
the Board’s office.
INVENTORY OF COMMITTEE, TASK FORCES AND ADVISORY COUNCILS
Committee on Professional Standards
The Committee on Professional Standards (Committee) reviews the investigative reports and evidence
submitted by the Board’s pharmacy surveyors or by the investigators of the Attorney General’s Office
(AGO) Health-Licensing Division. Minnesota Statutes §214.103, subd. 8 states, in part, that a
“complaint may not be dismissed without the concurrence of at least two board members and, upon the
request of the complainant, a review by a representative of the attorney general's office”. In order to
meet these requirements, the Committee consists of two members of the Board, the Executive Director
and the chief pharmacy surveyor. In addition, the Assistant Attorney General assigned to the Board
attends all meetings of the Committee. (Consequently, all complaints are reviewed by a representative
of the AGO – even when the complainant has not requested such review).
The Board members serve on this Committee on a rotating basis and the Committee meets six to eight
times per year (depending on the number of complaints that need to be reviewed). On average, the
meetings last between two to four hours. The Executive Director, the chief pharmacy surveyor and one
office specialist spend a portion of their time preparing for the Committee’s meetings and completing
required paperwork. Consequently, part of the costs associated with the Committee consists of a
portion of the salaries and benefits paid to those individuals. The Board members are each paid a $55
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