Minnesota Board of Pharmacy - Minnesota State Legislature

per diem and are reimbursed for mileage. The AGO charges the Board for the services of the assistant
attorney general who provides legal counsel to the Committee. Case materials are provided to the
Committee members in electronic format whenever possible in order to minimize printing and postage
costs.
Since complaint investigation data is considered private under Minnesota Statutes §13.41, the meetings
of the Committee are not open to the public. The Committee dismisses a complaint if the investigation
has not substantiated the allegations or if the infraction can be handled in a non-disciplinary manner. If
the Committee determines that disciplinary action against a licensee or registrant might be warranted,
the Executive Director works with the Assistant Attorney General to initiate the due process procedures
required under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 14. This typically includes an appearance by the licensee or
registrant before a Complaint Review Panel.
Complaint Review Panel
The Complaint Review Panel (Panel) consists of two Board members, with members serving on a
rotating basis. Panels meet six to eight times per year, depending on the number of disciplinary cases
that need to be handled. The Board’s Executive Director serves as staff to the Panel and an Assistant
Attorney General serves as counsel. Consequently, part of the costs associated with the Committee
consists of a portion of the salary and benefits paid to the Executive Director. The Board members are
each paid a $55 per diem and are reimbursed for mileage. The AGO charges the Board for the services
of the Assistant Attorney General who provides legal counsel to the Panel. Case materials are provided
to the Panel members in electronic format whenever possible in order to minimize printing and postage
costs.
A licensee or registrant who appears before the Panel receives a Notice of Conference (NOC) that is
prepared by the Assistant Attorney General and reviewed by the Executive Director. The NOC informs
the licensee or registrant of the date and time of the Panel meeting, of the allegations made against
them, and of their right to be represented by an attorney. It also provides them with other information
required to ensure that they understand their due process rights. The Panel may dismiss the complaint
if the testimony and evidence provided by the licensee or registrant, as weighed against the
investigative reports and evidence submitted by the Board’s pharmacy surveyors or by the investigators
of the AGO, persuades the members that the allegations have not been substantiated or that the
infraction can be handled in a non-disciplinary manner. If the Panel determines that discipline is
warranted, it will attempt to resolve the matter by proposing a Stipulation and Consent Order (SCO) to
the licensee or registrant. Assuming that the licensee or registrant agrees to the discipline proposed by
the Panel, the SCO is presented to the full Board for consideration. If the full Board approves the SCO,
it is served on the licensee or registrant who must then comply with the terms of the Order. Very rarely,
a licensee or registrant will not agree to a SCO and the Board initiates a contested-case hearing before
an administrative law judge.
Variance Committee
As mentioned above, the Board regularly receives requests for variances to the rules that it administers.
At one time, all variance requests were considered by the full Board at one of its regularly scheduled
business meetings. However, due to an increased number of variance requests, the Board decided to
establish a Variance Committee to review such requests and make recommendations to the full Board.
The Variance Committee consists of two Board members, the chief pharmacy surveyor, two other
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