The Boston Metropolitan Area (Greater Boston) employs over 5,500 pharmacists. They play a crucial role in the medical care of tens of thousands of patients daily throughout Greater Boston. If you're one of these dedicated pharmacists, the attorneys at the Lento Law Firm know you worked hard to get your Greater Boston pharmacist license and build your career, which is why it is incredibly upsetting when you are accused of misconduct and your Greater Boston pharmacist license is threatened.

At the Lento Law Firm, we believe you've worked too hard to lose your career over a mistake or miscommunication. When you're going up against a state board of pharmacy in Greater Boston, you need the Lento Law Firm in your corner, protecting your rights and pharmacist license. We represent pharmacists all over Greater Boston, including Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire). Get started with our Professional License Defense Team today by calling 888-535-3686 or contacting us online.

Allegations That Can Threaten Your Greater Boston Pharmacist License

With lives on the line, Greater Boston pharmacists are held to a high standard. It's important that the public has faith in the pharmacists in the Greater Boston community. Different laws will govern your pharmacist license depending on where you work in Greater Boston. Each state has its own pharmacy-specific law.

Each of these laws lists in detail every allegation that can threaten your Greater Boston pharmacist license. Prohibited behaviors under these laws range from administrative to causing real patient harm. Common allegations of pharmacist misconduct we see at the Lento Law Firm include:

• Improperly handling controlled substances, such as unlawfully distributing or taking them for personal use
• Theft or attempted theft of prescription medications
• Neglecting to take necessary precautions to prevent unauthorized access or distribution of controlled substances
• Making prescription mistakes that lead to a patient's hospitalization or displaying a repeated pattern of such errors
• Engaging in dishonest, fraudulent, misleading, or deceptive conduct related to dispensing medication or providing advice
• Creating, submitting, or maintaining false or fraudulent records
• Failing to offer counseling to patients, disregarding requests for counseling, or discouraging patients from receiving counseling about prescription medications
• Filling a prescription that a reasonable pharmacist exercising professional judgment would deem inaccurate or inauthentic
• Knowingly dispensing prescription medication without a valid prescription
• Dispensing or offering to dispense a drug that the FDA has not approved
• Providing prescription order forms to a physician that reference a specific pharmacist or pharmacy
• Performing pharmacy-related duties while under the influence of drugs or alcohol
• Violating patient or customer confidentiality
• Failing to report a suspension or revocation of your pharmacist license in another state
• Getting a felony conviction

Greater Boston pharmacists working in academic or research settings may face different types of allegations than those in retail settings. Allegations against Great Boston pharmacists working in these settings often include:

• Fabricating or falsifying research data, such as manipulating clinical trial results or lab findings
• Failing to adhere to Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) or Good Clinical Practice (GCP), including not following FDA laws or regulatory guidelines
• Improperly handling or storage of medications
• Failure to report adverse events or drug safety data from regulatory agencies
• Misrepresenting drug efficacy or safety
• Accepting bribes or kickbacks to influence lab results, approvals, and more
• Failure to disclose conflicts of interest
• Conducting authorized clinical trials
• Intellectual property theft

At the Lento Law Firm, our Professional License Defense Team has extensive experience representing Great Boston pharmacists accused of all types of misconduct. When you retain the Lento Law Firm, we will walk you through the possible outcomes of your case based on the allegations and evidence against you. We will then advise you on the best strategies for defending your case and represent you the entire time before your state pharmacy board.

Disciplinary Action Process for Great Boston Pharmacist Misconduct Allegations

How the disciplinary process will look for you depends on many factors, such as the nature and severity of your case and where you are located. As you know, Greater Boston expands outside of Massachusetts and into neighboring Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Your Greater Boston pharmacist license will, therefore, be governed by one of these three entities:

• Massachusetts Board of Registration in Pharmacy
• New Hampshire Board of Pharmacy
• Rhode Island Board of Pharmacy

Each of these governing bodies has its own policies and procedures for addressing disciplinary action, but generally, the process will look as follows:

Complaint

The disciplinary process will begin with a complaint to your state board of pharmacy. That board will conduct a preliminary review of the complaint to confirm its jurisdiction over the matter and your licensure. If so, it will open an investigation into the complaint.

Investigation

Your state board of pharmacy will thoroughly investigate the allegations against you. This can involve interviewing you, your employer, and other relevant parties and collecting evidence. Evidence the investigator may collect could be videos, photos, employment records, patient records, and more.

Negotiations and Settlement Agreements

From the start, your Lento Law Firm attorney will work with your state board of pharmacy to reach a solution that satisfies both parties. Negotiating can shorten the disciplinary action process and mitigate harm to your Greater Boston license.

If the misconduct you have been accused of relates to your own drug or alcohol addiction, you might be eligible to participate in an alternative to discipline program. These programs are offered to pharmacists dealing with addiction on the Massachusetts and New Hampshire sides of Greater Boston. Rhode Island does not yet offer such a program. While this is a great option for many pharmacists dealing with substance use disorders, there are pros and cons to participation in these programs. Your Lento Law Firm attorney will walk you through the benefits and downsides of the program, your eligibility, and the process so you can make the best decision for you.

Informal Conference/Informal Hearing

Informal conferences are an opportunity to converse with your state board of pharmacy and try to reach a resolution without going through the full formal disciplinary action process. Despite the casual name, you should never attend an informal conference or hearing without representation from your Lento Law Firm attorney. Remember, your state board of pharmacy is there to protect the Greater Boston public, not you, your rights, or your license.

Formal Hearing

Your Lento Law Firm attorney will present your defense at a formal hearing. Formal hearings are similar to court cases in that there are opening arguments, witnesses are examined and cross-examined, and evidence is presented. Just like you would never go into court alone, you should go into a formal hearing without Lento Law Firm representation.

Determinations

There are a few actions your state board of pharmacy may take after assessing your case. These options can be finalized through a consent order or after the disciplinary action process. Outcomes of Greater Boston pharmacist disciplinary action proceedings include:

• Dismissal
• Advisory letter
• Reprimand
• Probation
• License suspension
• License revocation
• Suspension of license to handle controlled substances
• Revocation of license to handle controlled substances
• Fines and penalties

Consequences of Disciplinary Action Against Your Greater Boston Pharmacist License

When your state board of pharmacy takes action against your Greater Boston pharmacist license, there is no shortage of consequences, from personal to professional. Certainly, the professional consequences are large. When your Greater Boston State Board of Pharmacy takes disciplinary action against your license, it is required to report it to the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB). The NPDB houses disciplinary action reports for medical professionals throughout the country.

While NPDB isn't accessible to the public, its resource state boards of pharmacy and employers who are registered healthcare organizations will view it. Having an NPDB report at all will impact potential employers' hiring decisions and will be a factor in whether another state pharmacy board will accept your application for licensure in their state. This means that if you want to start over as a pharmacist outside Greater Boston, you won't be able to put your disciplinary action behind you easily.

NPDB may not be available to the public, but the disciplinary action taken against you and your Greater Boston pharmacist license won't be a secret for long. The New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts Boards of Pharmacy publish their own disciplinary action reports on their public websites.

Appealing the Disciplinary Action Against Your Greater Boston Pharmacist License

As we've mentioned above, disciplinary action against your Greater Boston pharmacist license can limit or prohibit you from practicing pharmacy in Greater Boston and throughout the country. Losing your career is devastating; if there is any possible way to appeal your case, you must keep fighting for your license.

Often, Greater Boston pharmacists go into their state pharmacy board disciplinary action processes without an attorney, especially when they are innocent, the infraction was minor, or it was the result of a miscommunication. Then, through the process, they find their state board of pharmacy isn't willing to give them the benefit of the doubt or even treat them respectfully during the process.

If you aren't happy with the outcome of your case or believe your rights were violated during your state board of pharmacy disciplinary action process, contact the Lento Law Firm immediately. Our Professional License Defense Team will let you know if you are eligible for appeal, and if so, we will represent you in your board of pharmacy disciplinary action appeal.

The disciplinary process looks different depending on which state board of pharmacy issued the disciplinary action against you. For example, in one state, you may be appealing directly to the board of pharmacy, while in another state, you may be filing an appeal directly in a state court. Fortunately, the Lento Law Firm attorneys are well-versed in each state's disciplinary action and appeals processes.

Who We Can Help in Greater Boston

Our Greater Boston pharmacist clients are all different. Some are recent pharmacist graduates, while others are veteran pharmacists who have been serving Greater Boston for years. The pharmacists we've represented also come from all types of work settings, from hospitals to retail pharmacies and researchers. Unfortunately, miscommunications, mistakes, and allegations can happen in any work environment and at any stage in your career.

Our Greater Boston clients often work in large retail pharmacies like CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, and Target, but we also have clients from mom-and-pop pharmacies throughout the area. We have also represented pharmacists in Greater Boston's biggest healthcare systems, including Mass General, Beth Israel Lahey Health, and BMC Health System.

Many Lento Law Firm Greater Boston pharmacist clients also focus on research, whether at biotech or pharmaceutical companies or universities. Some of these companies include Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

While most of our clients are located within the thriving urban center of Boston, we are here for you wherever you are in Greater Boston. We've helped clients throughout the area, including Cambridge, Newton, Worcester, Providence, Warwick, Manchester, Barnstable Town, and Concord.

If You're a Greater Boston Pharmacist Facing Misconduct Allegations, the Lento Law Firm Can Help

Your Greater Boston pharmacist license is worth too much to gamble on. When you retain the Lento Law Firm, we will do everything in our power to get you the best possible outcome in your case and try to limit the stress on you throughout the process. Let our Professional License Defense Team fight for you. Call us today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.