Rulemaking Activity

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission is proposing amendments to WAC 246-945-015 and adding four new sections to chapter 246-945 WAC establishing prescription label accessibility standards to ensure meaningful access to prescription information for patients with visual impairments or print disabilities, and for limited English Proficient patients.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission adopted new accessible labeling rules to establish requirements for all dispensing facilities [i.e., pharmacies, nonresident pharmacies, healthcare entities (HCE), hospital pharmacy associated clinics (HPAC)] and dispensing practitioners (i.e., health professionals with prescriptive authority in the State of Washington). The adopted rule addresses establish that all practitioners and facilities in the state of Washington dispensing prescription medications shall provide information to the patient on the prescription container in a format that can be accurately comprehended by the patient and inform patients about the availability of accessibility services. The adopted rule creates four new sections WACs 246-945-026, 246-945-027, 246-945-028, and 246-945-029. WAC 246-945-015 is also amended to inform dispensing practitioners that they must comply with the new sections of rule. 

The Board of Hearing and Speech is considering amendments to chapter 246-828 WAC, addressing tele-practice for initial fittings of hearing aids and the recent requirement for hearing tests when fitting prescription hearing aids.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission is considering amending WAC 246-945-015 and 246-945-026 through 246-945-029 to refine the standards for dispensing practitioners and dispensing facilities subject to the commission's prescription labeling accessibility rules.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing updates to WAC 246-470-010, 246-470-030, and 246-470-050 to add definitions and language consistency, and to clarify prescribers’ ability to request their prescribing history.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) adopted clarifying terms and added definitions of "delivery," "dispense," and "ultimate user." DOH also adopted language to clarify a prescriber’s ability to request the history of prescriptions the prescribers have written to decrease confusion regarding requirements of dispensers and prescribers.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission is proposing to amend WAC 246-945-345 and add a new section, WAC 246-945-346 to establish the expectations of pharmacies related to noncontrolled and controlled substance prescription transfers upon patient request.

The State Board of Health (SBOH) repealed Chapter 246-366A and WAC 246-366-160, and amended WAC 246-366-005, to prevent the implementation of outdated and obsolete rules.

The State Board of Health (board) is considering creating a new chapter (chapter 246-370 WAC) of draft rules for school environmental health and safety. The board will consider establishing minimum statewide health and safety standards for schools, formalizing school environmental health and safety inspection procedures, and repealing chapters 246-366 and 246-366A WAC.

The State Board of Health proposes to amend WAC 246-366-005 and to repeal WAC 246-366-160 and chapter 236-366A WAC. By amending and repealing these rules, the board will prevent the implementation of out-of-date and obsolete rules.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is considering establishing operational, health, and safety standards for private detention facilities serving juveniles and the creating a severity matrix for fines related to private detention facility enforcement to implement Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1232 (E2SHB 1232) (chapter 235, Laws of 2025).

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing to add NSF/ANSI 40 testing to WAC 246-272A-0110.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing amendments to WAC 246-817-990, 246-853-990, 246-918-990, 246-919-990, 246-922-990, and 246-933-990 to update fee changes made by House Bill (HB) 1972 (chapter 15, Laws of 2024) codified in RCW 18.71.310, 18.71A.020, 18.57.015, 18.22.250, 18.32.534, and 18.92.047. DOH is also proposing to correct an error in the fee table in WAC 246-828-990 to ensure it accurately reflects the fees that are being charged for the speech-language pathologist inactive license.

The Examining Board of Psychology is adopting emergency rules to amend WACs 246-924-010, 246-924-046, 246-924-053, 246-924-095, and 246-924-100, establish 246-924-048 and 246-924-0481, and repeal 246-924-047 in chapter 246-924 WAC to implement parts of 2SHB 1724 (chapter 425, Laws of 2023). These emergency rules continue emergency rules initially filed on June 18, 2024, under WSR 24-14-079. The rules also incorporate an additional amendment, reducing the minimum amount of direct, face-to-face individual supervision from 2 hours per 20 hours of pre-internship experience to 1 hour per 20 hours. These emergency rules will be continued while permanent rules filed under WSR 24-11-005 on May 2, 2024, are in progress.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is considering revisions to WAC 246-924-990, psychology fees and renewal cycle, to: (1) update application, renewal, and other fees for a psychologist license; (2) establish a fee schedule for a licensed psychological associate license; and (3) establish a fee schedule for participation in the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (Psypact).

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing revisions to WAC 246-924-990, Psychology fees and renewal cycle, to implement recent legislation by: (1) updating application, renewal, and other fees for a psychologist license; (2) establishing a fee schedule for a licensed psychological associate license; and (3) establishing a fee schedule for participation in the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) adopted changes to WAC 246-924-990, updating fees for psychology credentials and establishing a fee schedule for participation in an interjurisdictional compact.

The Examining Board of Psychology adopted amendments to WAC 246-924-230 to establish health equity continuing education (CE) requirements and implement Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill (ESSB) 5229 (Chapter 276, Laws of 2021). The adopted rule requires two hours in health equity CE every three years, rather than four years, and is absorbed into the existing number of CE hours required. It does not change the total number of CE hours required for the profession and aligns with licensed psychologists’ three-year CE cycle. Additionally, the board adopted amendments to improve clarity and remove obsolete language, including provisions that allowed the board to permit CE from another jurisdiction to fulfill Washington’s CE requirements and to waive CE requirements for a retired psychologist who wishes to maintain active licensure.

The Examining Board of Psychology is considering amending, repealing, and creating new sections in chapter 246-924 WAC. Rule amendments will be considered to implement recent legislation to reduce barriers to entering and remaining in the behavioral health care workforce; streamline and shorten the credentialing process; establish a psychological associate license; amend the licensure process for experienced psychologists licensed outside of Washington.

Additionally, this rulemaking project will continue work started under WSR 23-06-041, under which the board began considering amendments related to licensure requirements, changes to the national examination, supervision requirements, the role of technology and telepsychology in the profession, and additional options for sanctions.

The Examining Board of Psychologists adopted emergency rules to amend WACs 246-924-010, 246-924-046, 246-924-053, 246-924-095, and 246-924-100, establish 246-924-048 and 246-924-0481, and repeal 246-924-047. The rules implement 2SHB 1724 (chapter 425, Laws of 2023) that reduce barriers to entering and remaining in the behavioral health workforce and to streamline the credentialing process.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) extended emergency rules reducing barriers for psychologists.

The Examining Board of Psychology proposes to amend chapter 246-924 WAC to update licensure standards and implement Second Substitute House Bill 1724 (chapter 425, Laws of 2023) and Engrossed Second Substitute House Bill 2247 (chapter 371, Laws of 2024). Amendments address licensure requirements, including telehealth standards, application processes, education and supervised experience requirements, approved supervisor criteria, residency and educational meeting standards, and tele-supervision.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) revised its public record rules to align with changes in state law and better inform the public about its public records process, providing more transparency and clearer procedures for accessing the department’s public records. The revised rules relocate the existing rules to a new chapter in title 246 WAC—chapter 246-02 WAC—to make them easier to locate and organize. 

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing to relocate the public records requirements, currently located in chapter 246-08 WAC, to a new chapter in Title 246 WAC—chapter 246-02 WAC—and expand and clarify the requirements to reflect current state law and agency procedures. DOH is also proposing to update the references to the public records rules in WAC 246-08-480 and repeal the outdated rules regarding public records in WAC 246-08-420, 246-08-440, 246-08-450, and 246-08-990.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is considering creating a new chapter within Title 246 WAC regarding public records. DOH is considering amending and relocating its existing public records rules in chapter 246-08 WAC and adopting new rules as necessary. Changes under consideration are a result of changes in statutes, changes in internal operations, staffing reorganization, and an effort to provide clear, concise, and reasonable rules.

Washington Medical Commission notice of adoption of interpretive statement INS2025-01, "Qualified Physician Under Optometry Law", interpreting qualifications for physicians licensed under chapter 18.71 RCW for purposes of chapter 18.53 RCW, as amended by Senate Bill 5389 (chapter 400, Laws of 2023). Effective May 9, 2025. Filed as WSR 25-11-037.

The Department of Health is considering amending radioactive material licenses and licensee's fees to cover operating costs for the following: Small business discount provision and optional fee payment schedule applicable to radioactive materials licensees; Fees for specialized radioactive material licenses; Fees for medical and veterinary radioactive material use Fees for industrial radioactive material licenses; Fees for laboratory radioactive material licenses; and Fees for licensing and compliance actions.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing a 31% fee increase for radioactive materials licenses to cover operating costs but not proposing any new license categories. DOH is proposing to remove the 50% discount for additional sites and the 25% small business discount because they are unfunded. 

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) adopted increases in radioactive material licensing fees in chapter 246-254 WAC to cover operating costs for: small business discount provision and optional fee payment schedule applicable to radioactive materials licensees; specialized radioactive material licenses; medical and veterinary radioactive material use; industrial radioactive material licenses; laboratory radioactive materials licenses; and licensing and compliance actions. When adopted rules increase the fees 31% across all of the licenses, do not add any new license categories, removes the 50% discount for additional sites, and removes the 25% small business discount.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing rule amendments to WAC 246-926-990 correcting a typographical error in the application fee rules for X-Ray technicians.

The Department of Health adopted amendments to chapter 246-926 WAC to clarify, streamline, and modernize the regulations of cardiovascular invasive specialists, diagnostic radiologic technologists, therapeutic radiologic technologists, nuclear medicine technologists, radiologist assistants, and x-ray technicians. This includes removing outdated provisions, updating outdated terms and citations, clarifying credentialing and competency requirements, clarifying allowable duties for radiological technologists and x-ray technicians, repealing, and adding new sections of rule, and renaming the chapter to better reflect all types of professions credentialed under the chapter. The adopted rules establish enforceable licensing requirements and safety mechanisms for patients receiving imaging services.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) amended WAC 246-247-035 to adopt the 2025 federal regulations by reference. This amendment makes no changes to any requirements previously adopted but is required for DOH to receive delegation of the Radionuclide Air Emissions Program from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) updated the federal regulations publication date from 2023 to the most recently adopted 2024 version previously adopted by reference. This amendment makes no changes to any requirements previously adopted but is required for DOH to receive delegation of the Radionuclide Air Emissions Program from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Rescission of CR-103E concerning Medication Assistance. Effective May 2, 2025, the CR-103E for Medication Assistance, filed February 20, 2025, published in WSR 25-06-008 is rescinded because permanent rulemaking has been completed for WACs 246-945-710, 246-945-712, 246-945-714, 246-945- 716, and 246-945-718. The permanent rule was filed as WSR 25-08-072. 

The Board of Physical Therapy adopted amendments to waive education, training, experience, and examination requirements for applicants that qualify for licensure by endorsement and to further expand upon the endorsement pathway. This amendment in WAC 246-915-030, 246-915-040, 246-915-085, and 246-915-120 complies with recent legislation codified as RCW 18.130.077.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is proposing an amendment to the federal rule publication date to conform to adopt national standards in WAC 246-247-035 for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements for radionuclide emissions.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission has adopted a revision to WAC 246-945-100, Compounding minimum standards, to update the rule to the most recent version of the USP – National Formulary <795> and <797>. This will capture the revisions to the USP <795> and <797>, which have been made official since WAC 246-945-100 became effective on July 1, 2020.

The Washington State Board of Nursing is proposing new sections of rule, WAC 246-840-835 and 246-840-935, and amendments to WAC 246-840-930 and 246-840-940 to implement Substitute House Bill (SHB) 1124 (chapter 14, Laws of 2022) to expand the delegation of glucose monitoring and testing to all settings where Nursing Assistant -Registered and Nursing Assistant-Certified individuals work. Additionally, the board is proposing changes to supervision and valuation timeframes to align with SHB 1124.

The Washington State Board of Nursing (board) is considering amendments to WAC 246-840-015 through WAC 246-840-260 to clarify and update outdated language, rewrite and reformat existing rules to reflect current best practices, and restructure sections as necessary. This rulemaking is Phase 1 of the board’s formal review process. The board will consider additional topics to reduce barriers and simplify regulations for multistate licensure applicants, reduce barriers for applicants educated outside the United States, and explore limiting NCLEX attempts before remediation. The board also plans to address impacts from upcoming proposals from bills passed in the 2025 Legislative Session.

Substitute Senate Bill (SSB) 6086, passed in 2020, allows a pharmacy to extend its pharmacy license to a remote dispensing site where technology is used to dispense medications for the treatment of Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) or its symptoms. The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission adopted rules that establish the minimum standards for OUD medication remote dispensing sites. Adopted rules reflect standards, restrictions and requirements set in statute.

The minimum standards must address who may access medications at the remote dispensing site pursuant to a valid prescription or chart order. The minimum standards must also require that the pharmacy is responsible for stocking and maintaining a perpetual inventory of the OUD medications stored in or at the remote dispensing site (referred to as the “supplying pharmacy” in the rule language).

Current rules in chapter 246-945 WAC cover requirements for drugs stored outside of a pharmacy but restrict their location to a facility that is otherwise able to store and possess drugs (i.e., a licensed pharmaceutical firm). The adopted rule, WAC 246-945-457, is necessary to establish enforceable minimum standards as directed by SSB 6086 for OUD medication remote dispensing sites. As the statute specifically requires rulemaking, no other alternatives were considered.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission is proposing to add a new subsection to WAC 246-945-055 to utilize the commission’s authority, to delete substances designated as a Schedule IV controlled substance. The commission is also proposing to create a new section, WAC 246-945-05001, to establish a list of exempted substances from RCW 69.50.204, RCW 69.50.206, RCW 69.50.208, RCW 69.50.210, and RCW 69.50.212, including fenfluramine.

Effective August 9, 2024, the Washington State Department of Health is rescinding emergency rules which suspend the requirement for home care aides to complete testing within two years of training (filed as WSR 24-13-001 on June 5, 2024). The emergency rules are being rescinded because permanent rules filed as WSR 24-15-025 supersede the emergency rule.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) rescinded the Interpretive Statement titled Health Equity Continuing Education for Midwives, HSQA OHP MW01, which was filed December 22, 2023, and published in WSR 24-02-024. WA-DOH is rescinding this interpretive statement because it was permanently incorporated into WAC 246-834-355 as published in WSR 24-10-091 filed April 30.

Effective November 11, 2024, rescission of WSR 24-16-085, CR-103E, emergency rules for naloxone nasal spray as over-the-counter status, WAC 246-945-030 and 246-945-034. The commission is rescinding these emergency rules because permanent rulemaking has been completed to update these rules. The permanent rule was filed as WSR 24-21-069 on October 11, 2024, and becomes effective November 11, 2024. Memo to rescind emergency rule filed as WSR 24-21-081.

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) rescinded this policy statement on enforcement discretion of certain requirements in chapter 246-341 WAC applicable to Opioid Treatment Program licensing and certification, which was filed May 24, 2024, and published in WSR 24-12-021.

The Department of Health is rescinding this policy statement because the content was permanently incorporated into WAC 246-828-100 as published in WSR 24-01-087 on December 18, 2023. The policy statement is no longer needed. Filed April 23, 2024.

The Washington State Department of Health (department), Health Systems Quality Assurance Division, Office of Community Health Systems, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Section is rescinding Policy Number EMS 20-01 | EMS Providers and Emergency Vaccinations, which was filed October 23, 2020, and published in WSR 20-22-030.

The policy is being rescinded because it is no longer needed. The department adopted permanent rules under WSR 24-15-104 on July 22, 2024, for chapter 246-976 WAC Emergency Medical Services and Trauma Care Systems. The rules became effective on September 30, 2024.

Filed January 9, 2025, as WSR 25-03-048.

The Washington State Department of Health (the department), Health Systems Quality Assurance Division, Office of Community Health Systems, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Section is rescinding Policy Number EMS 21-01 | EMS Providers and Emergency Administration of Monoclonal Antibodies, which was filed December 7, 2021, and published in WSR 22-01-043.

The policy is being rescinded because it is no longer needed. The department adopted permanent rules under WSR 24-15-104 on July 22, 2024, for chapter 246-976 WAC Emergency Medical Services and Trauma Care Systems. The rules became effective on September 30, 2024. The amendments to the rule and updates to the scope of practice include requirements for EMS providers listed in the policy statement to administer monoclonal antibodies.

Filed January 9, 2025, as WSR 25-03-047.

This statement allowed currently operating organ transport services and organ transport vehicles in Washington state to continue operating while permanent rules were in development to implement the department’s licensing requirements under Substitute House Bill (SHB) 1271, chapter 290, Laws of 2023.

This policy is being rescinded because the department officially filed a CR-103P in WSR 24-17-005 on August 8, 2024, for chapter 246-976 WAC Organ transport service and vehicle license. The rules became effective on September 30, 2024, therefore the policy statement is no longer needed. Organ transport vehicle and service license requirements are established in WAC 246-976-360.

Filed December 20, 2024 as WSR 25-02-058.

This policy statement provided guidance to donor milk banks and insurance carriers consistent with RCW 43.70.645 until the department adopted permanent rules. The policy statement served as the milk bank safety standards established by the department for inpatient use for the purpose of RCW 43.70.645 and 48.43.815, clarified and added a definition addressing donor human milk obtained from a milk bank for the purposes of ensuring inclusion of donor milk provided by renumerated donors and ensuring inclusive language use.

The department is rescinding this policy statement because it is superseded by permanent rules that were adopted August 22, 2023, filed as WSR 23-17-149 with an effective date of September 22, 2023, making the policy statement obsolete.

Individuals requiring information on this should contact Me'kyel Bailey, lead policy advisor, email mekyel.bailey@doh.wa.gov, or phone 360-754-9161. Filed February 5, 2024.