by Mark Stout:
The decision by state legislators to stack the state pharmacy board with pharmacists as part of a sweeping sterile compounding reform bill is raising alarms with some experts, who say those members need more vetting to avoid the apparent conflicts in the wake of last year’s fungal meningitis outbreak.
A bill unveiled yesterday by state Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez and the Committee on Public Health targets the state’s compounding pharmacies, mandating surprise inspections, hefty fines up to $25,000 and requiring pharmacies to report incidents.
But Gov. Deval Patrick had recommended four pharmacists on the 11-member board.
The legislative bill calls for seven. The proposed reforms follow last year’s deadly outbreak that killed 61 people, sickened more than 740 and was linked to Framingham’s New England Compounding Center.
“You run the risk of having conflicts of interest,” Sarah Sellers, a former Food and Drug Administration official, said of the bill’s board proposal. “It’s analogous of having employees from Pfizer working for the FDA office of compliance. It’s a challenging situation when you have industry policing industry for the purpose of enforcement.”
Sanchez recognized that the board’s composition is a “sensitive subject,” but said other state boards have “majorities” of professionals who work in the fields they oversee.
“Who knows pharmacy better than the pharmacists?” Sanchez said, adding that increased reporting requirements and an advisory council will hold a spotlight on the board’s activities.
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