In May 2025, the Iowa Board of Pharmacy welcomed two new board members following their appointment by Gov. Reynolds and confirmation by the Iowa Senate. Dave Weetman was introduced in the last edition of the newsletter. This month we’d like to introduce Michelle Garvin.
Michelle L. Garvin, MA, CRC, CPhT, CHW, co-owns Wester Drug in Muscatine with her husband, Cory. She is very active in the pharmacy profession and is passionate about the advancing roles technicians play in providing pharmacy care in the community. Michelle is active with the Iowa Pharmacy Association as well as the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) and sits on a National Stakeholder Advisory Committee for PTCB. In addition, she teaches courses for the Community Health Worker training program for CEImpact and has sat on the local Public Health Board College since 2011. Michelle has served on the Board of Trustees for Eastern Iowa Community. Most recently she was voted as a Luminary for CPESN Community Health.
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The changes made to Iowa Code chapter 155A in 2024 expanded the authority of the board to develop statewide protocols in collaboration with the medical director of the Department of Health and Human Services. While the code no longer identifies the services by name for which the board has previously approved statewide protocols (test and treat for influenza and strep, nicotine-replacement smoking cessation, immunizations, etc.), those protocols are still authorized and valid for use by Iowa pharmacists and pharmacies.
Iowa Code also authorizes pharmacists to develop protocols in areas where they have sufficient education, training, and experience. The board does not maintain any template or standardized protocols for topics other than those already developed and approved by the board.
The board’s protocols are currently under review, and the board will be considering suggested updates at a future open session meeting.
The DIAL Application and Renewal Bureau recently updated processes for handling business license application changes. Previously, certain license changes that required an application and fee resulted in the issuance of a new license number for the business licensee (e.g., location change). That change, in some instances, may result in operational impacts to the licensee due to contracts that may be based upon the license number (e.g., third-party payer or supplier contracts that have to be re-signed, which results in periods of no service). In response to stakeholder feedback on these issues, the bureau has implemented a procedure to allow the licensee to determine if it would like to retain the existing license number or have a different number issued. It is important to note, however, that any pending investigation, pending disciplinary action, or current and ongoing board order will continue to be associated with the licensed entity and will be associated with any new license number issued to the entity.
In an effort to align with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and its requirements, the Iowa Board of Pharmacy no longer requires long-term care facilities (LTCs) to obtain an Iowa Controlled Substances Act (CSA) registration. The DEA does not require such facilities to have a business registration as these types of facilities do not maintain common stocks of controlled substances. Generally, the controlled substances on site at the facility are owned by the resident or by a pharmacy such as through an e-kit. The Iowa Board of Pharmacy is aligning with DEA on this subject by eliminating the need for LTCs to obtain a business CSA registration.
Iowa-licensed pharmacists may now apply for an individual CSA registration and subsequent DEA registration. Iowa Code section 124.551A requires all prescribing practitioners to register with the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) at the time of registration. To ensure compliance with this requirement, all CSA registrations for individual practitioners are issued in “Pending PMP” status. Once issued, applicants must use their CSA number to apply for a DEA registration. When the DEA number has been issued, the applicant must contact a PMP administrator to update their PMP profile with their new credentials, or apply for a PMP account under the role “Pharmacist with Prescriptive Authority.” After completing the PMP registration process, the CSA registration will be activated and the applicant will be fully credentialed as a mid-level practitioner in Iowa. The DEA continues to work on updating its table of controlled substances authority for mid-level practitioners by discipline within the state in which they practice. Once complete, this information will be found on the DEA website.
During the 2025 legislative session, Gov. Reynolds signed SF 383, an act relating to pharmacy benefits managers, pharmacies, prescription drugs, and pharmacy services administrative organizations, including applicability provisions. The Iowa Insurance Division (IID) is responsible for implementation of the bill’s requirements. On Sept. 24, 2025, the division published Bulletin 25-06 to provide stakeholders with information relating to its efforts to implement the bill’s provisions.
The bulletin provides information about concerns and practices that led up to the introduction of SF 383, as well as the code changes made by the bill. The bulletin updates stakeholders on:
- The status of pending litigation that includes a preliminary injunction applicable to the parties to the lawsuit, and
- The fact that the code requirements are applicable to entities that are not party to the lawsuit.
As of Oct. 1, 2025, the pharmacy Naloxone Dispensing and Dispose Rx programs have moved to the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). MedOne will continue to operate as the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) responsible for processing claims. All of the funding for these programs is provided by the SAMHSA State Opioid Response (SOR) grant and continues to be limited. To help sustain the longevity of the programs, coordination of benefits (COB) claims are encouraged. For questions regarding the program, please contact the SOR team at sor@hhs.iowa.gov. For issues related to processing claims, please contact MedOne directly at 888.884.6331.
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