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§ 873.3. Prescribing practices

Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes and Consolidated StatutesTitle 35 P.S. Health and SafetyEffective: January 3, 2017

Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes and Consolidated Statutes
Title 35 P.S. Health and Safety (Refs & Annos)
Chapter 6B. Drugs, Poisons and Dangerous Substances
Safe Emergency Prescribing Act
Effective: January 3, 2017
35 P.S. § 873.3
§ 873.3. Prescribing practices
(a) Limitation on quantity of opioid drug products.--
(1) Except as set forth in paragraph (2), a health care practitioner may not prescribe an opioid drug product to an individual seeking treatment in an emergency department or urgent care center, or who is in observation status in a hospital, in a quantity sufficient to treat that individual for more than seven days.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if, in the professional medical judgment of a health care practitioner, more than a seven-day supply of an opioid drug product is required to treat a patient's acute medical condition or is necessary for the treatment of pain associated with a cancer diagnosis or for palliative care, then the health care practitioner may issue a prescription for the quantity needed to treat such acute medical condition or pain associated with a cancer diagnosis or for palliative care. The condition triggering prescription of the opioid drug product under this paragraph shall be documented in the patient's medical record, and the health care practitioner must indicate that a non-opioid drug product alternative was not appropriate to treat the medical condition
(b) Refills.--A health care practitioner in an emergency department or urgent care center, or who is caring for a patient in observation status, may not write a prescription refill for an opioid drug product.

Credits

2016, Nov. 2, P.L. 976, No. 122, § 3, effective in 60 days [Jan. 3, 2017].
35 P.S. § 873.3, PA ST 35 P.S. § 873.3
Current through Act 10 of the 2024 Regular Session. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
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