JohnM asked
Can a pharmacist refill Butrans 20 mg patch Rx (MD wrote 2 refills on Rx)?
Answer
Butrans is a schedule III controlled substance and therefore can be refilled under federal law. Here is an excerpt of said law:
"Schedule III and IV substances
Except when dispensed directly by a practitioner, other than a pharmacist, to an ultimate user, no controlled substance in schedule III or IV, which is a prescription drug as determined under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), may be dispensed without a written or oral prescription in conformity with section 503(b) of that Act (21 U.S.C. 353(b)). Such prescriptions may not be filled or refilled more than six months after the date thereof or be refilled more than five times after the date of the prescription unless renewed by the practitioner."
So federal law allows up to 5 refills up to a max of 6 months per prescription. It should be noted however that if the laws in your specific state are more strict, the pharmacist must abide by the laws of the state. I am not aware of any state that is more strict than the federal law on this however.
I personally am very familiar with New York State law and refills ARE allowed on Butrans.
One caveat with with law is that it applies to medications prescribed for a 30 day supply or less. If a controlled schedule III drug is written for more than a 30 day supply, it is allowed to have 1 refill only on it.
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