Salary and Outlook
According to the US Department of Labor, there are 447,300 people employed as pharmacy technicians in
the United States.
The median annual salary is $36,740.
Entry level employees earn approximately $28,740 per year and senior employees earn approximately $47,580
per year.
Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.
Job Duties
- Transfer medication from vials to the appropriate number of sterile, disposable syringes, using aseptic techniques.
- Restock intravenous (IV) supplies and add measured drugs or nutrients to IV solutions under sterile conditions to prepare IV packs for various uses, such as chemotherapy medication.
- Supply and monitor robotic machines that dispense medicine into containers and label the containers.
- Deliver medications or pharmaceutical supplies to patients, nursing stations, or surgery.
- Maintain and merchandise home healthcare products or services.
- Price stock and mark items for sale.
- Receive written prescription or refill requests and verify that information is complete and accurate.
- Answer telephones, responding to questions or requests.
- Assist customers by answering simple questions, locating items, or referring them to the pharmacist for medication information.
- Operate cash registers to accept payment from customers.
- Price and file prescriptions that have been filled.
- Mix pharmaceutical preparations, according to written prescriptions.
- Order, label, and count stock of medications, chemicals, or supplies and enter inventory data into computer.
- Clean and help maintain equipment or work areas and sterilize glassware, according to prescribed methods.
- Prepack bulk medicines, fill bottles with prescribed medications, and type and affix labels.
- Compute charges for medication or equipment dispensed to hospital patients and enter data in computer.
- Prepare and process medical insurance claim forms and records.
- Enter prescription information into computer databases.
- Establish or maintain patient profiles, including lists of medications taken by individual patients.
- Maintain proper storage and security conditions for drugs.
- Receive and store incoming supplies, verify quantities against invoices, check for outdated medications in current inventory, and inform supervisors of stock needs and shortages.