North Dakota Turns to Telehealth to Address Pharmacy Services Crisis.

Posted: January 31, 2008

North Dakota Telepharmacy Project

Like other mostly rural states across the country, North Dakota has experienced a pharmacy services crisis. In 2000, the North Dakota Board of Pharmacy determined that more than 25 rural community pharmacies in the state had recently closed, and 12 more were at risk of closing.

To address this crisis, legislation was passed in 2001 allowing for telepharmacy, and North Dakota became the first state to pass administrative rules allowing retail pharmacies to operate in certain remote areas without requiring a pharmacist to be present.

Telepharmacy is the use of interactive video technology by licensed pharmacists at a central pharmacy site to supervise registered pharmacy technicians at remote telepharmacy sites; and to provide traditional pharmacy services, including drug utilization review, prescription verification, and patient counseling.  

In 2002 the NDSU College of Pharmacy created the North Dakota Telepharmacy Project (NDTP) with a grant from the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth. Revision of the telepharmacy rules in 2003 allowed for telepharmacy services to rural hospitals as well. 

Now in its sixth year, there are 44 community pharmacies and 13 hospitals participating in the NDTP and over 40,000 rural citizens have had their pharmacy services restored, retained, or established through the project. Additionally, by creating new jobs and restoring pharmacy services, the NDTP has brought $12 million in economic development to the local rural economy.

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