---
type: "Bill"
title: "Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product"
description: "Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product"
jurisdiction: "us/states/md"
legislature: "Maryland General Assembly"
session: "2021"
identifier: "SB 537"
citation: "Maryland SB 537 (2021)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Hershey"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 12
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2021-01-26"
last_action: "2021-05-18"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/46e45378-5ce8-450a-8999-a90ebeb3c64e"
source_url: "http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0537?ys=2021RS&search=True"
source_hash: "fc73e1e777faff22a639ac4470a5dfaea0204f4ac0f6336c475606aed79edc79"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-md"]
---

# Maryland SB 537 (2021) — Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Chapter - Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2021RS/Chapters_noln/CH_163_sb0537t.pdf)
2. **First - Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2021RS/bills/sb/sb0537f.pdf)
3. **Third - Pharmacists - Required Notification and Authorized Substitution - Lower-Cost Drug or Device Product** (committee substitute) — [source](http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2021RS/bills/sb/sb0537t.pdf)

## Votes

- On Third Reading — **137–0** (pass) · lower
- On Third Reading — **47–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Hershey — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2021-01-26** First Reading Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs `referral-committee`
- **2021-02-02** Hearing 2/16 at 1:00 p.m.
- **2021-03-16** Favorable with Amendments Report by Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-03-17** Favorable with Amendments { `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-03-17** Second Reading Passed with Amendments
- **2021-03-18** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2021-03-19** Referred Health and Government Operations `referral-committee`
- **2021-03-31** Favorable Report by Health and Government Operations `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-04-02** Favorable Adopted Second Reading Passed `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-04-05** Third Reading Passed `passage`
- **2021-04-06** Returned Passed
- **2021-05-18** Approved by the Governor - Chapter 163 `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/46e45378-5ce8-450a-8999-a90ebeb3c64e`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Maryland legislature records).