CCP Federal and State Regulations Questions and Answers

Question 1

A consultant pharmacist at a skilled nursing facility is informed that a resident's family brought in a bottle of expired oxycodone that they found at the deceased resident's home.
According to DEA regulations, what is the most appropriate action for the facility to take regarding these controlled substances?

Accepted Answer

The facility may dispose of the controlled substances on behalf of the resident as they have resided there.

Answer

The facility should add the medications to their own stock for disposal via a reverse distributor.

Answer

The consultant pharmacist should personally take the medications for destruction.

Answer

The family must be instructed to take the medications to a law enforcement take-back event.

Question 2

The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (OBRA '87) established foundational requirements for pharmaceutical services in long-term care facilities. Which of the following is a key mandate from OBRA '87?

Accepted Answer

A mandate that medication error rates in the facility must not exceed five percent.

Answer

A requirement for all consultant pharmacists to be Certified Geriatric Pharmacists (CGP).

Answer

A provision for weekly, instead of monthly, medication regimen reviews for all residents.

Answer

The establishment of a national formulary for all Medicare-certified nursing homes.

Question 3

A state Board of Pharmacy regulation requires consultant pharmacists to conduct an on-site visit to their contracted facilities at least monthly. A consultant pharmacist, using a HIPAA-compliant electronic health record system, has remote access to all resident charts, lab results, and nursing notes. For which of the following tasks is an on-site presence still federally emphasized, even with advanced remote access?

Accepted Answer

Assessing the integrity of the medication storage and distribution systems.

Answer

Reviewing a resident's complete medical chart for the monthly MRR.

Answer

Verifying the accuracy of a new medication order entry.

Answer

Documenting recommendations for the attending physician.

Question 4

During a monthly medication regimen review, a consultant pharmacist communicates a recommendation to the attending physician via a secure electronic message within the EHR. According to CMS regulations, if the physician disagrees with the pharmacist's recommendation, what is the physician required to do?

Accepted Answer

Document the rationale for not implementing the recommendation in the resident's record.

Answer

Contact the medical director to mediate the disagreement.

Answer

Request a second opinion from another pharmacist.

Answer

Wait for the next Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI) committee meeting to discuss the issue.

Question 5

A consultant pharmacist is developing a policy for a new long-term care facility to ensure compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Which of the following should be a key component of the facility's administrative safeguards under the HIPAA Security Rule?

Accepted Answer

Implementing security awareness and training programs for all staff members.

Answer

Installing encrypted hard drives on all computers that access patient information.

Answer

Ensuring medication storage rooms are physically locked and accessible only to authorized personnel.

Answer

Using a firewall to protect the facility's internal network from outside intrusion.

Question 6

Which of the following BEST describes the federal definition of an 'unnecessary drug' as established by CMS for residents in long-term care facilities?

Accepted Answer

A medication used in the presence of adverse consequences that indicate it should be reduced or discontinued.

Answer

Any non-formulary medication that has a formulary alternative.

Answer

Any brand-name drug for which a generic equivalent is available.

Answer

A medication that has not been reviewed by the P&T committee within the last 12 months.