{"bills":[{"photos":{"featured":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/hr4599-114/featured_reducing-unused-medications-act-of-2016-1463000229.jpg","featured_large":"https://assets.causes.com/bill/photo/hr4599-114/featured_large_reducing-unused-medications-act-of-2016-1463000229.jpg","shareable":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/bills/hr4599-114.png"},"introduced_on":"2016-02-24","title_override":"Should Pharmacies be able to Partially Fill Opioid Prescriptions to Reduce Unused Medications?","summary_override":"

This bill would allow for prescriptions involving Schedule II drugs (which are mostly opioids) to be partially filled so as to avoid providing patients with more potentially addictive prescription drugs than they need. Partial fills would be allowed as long as the following conditions are met:

Partial fills aren’t prohibited by state law;
The prescription meets all federal and state regulations;
Either the patient or their prescribing doctor request that the prescription be partially filled;
The total quantity given to the patient in all partial fills doesn’t exceed the total quantity of medication they were prescribed.

Remaining portions of a partially filled prescription may be filled within 30 days of the prescription being written. In emergency situations the remaining portions of a partially filled prescription could be filled within 72 hours of the prescription being issued.

Under current law, the partial filling of prescriptions for schedule III, IV, and V drugs is allowed but because of a lack of clarity in the regulations, partial fills schedule II aren’t allowed.

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The summary of that version is repeated here.)\n\nReducing Unused Medications Act of 2016\n\n(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow a pharmacist to partially fill a prescription for a schedule II controlled substance (such as a prescription opioid painkiller) if: (1) it is not prohibited by state law, (2) it is prescribed in accordance with existing laws and regulations, (3) it is requested by the patient or prescribing practitioner, and (4) the total quantity dispensed in partial fillings does not exceed the total quantity prescribed.\n\nAdditionally, a pharmacist may partially fill a prescription for a schedule II controlled substance in other circumstances in accordance with existing Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulations. 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Should Pharmacies be able to Partially Fill Opioid Prescriptions to Reduce Unused Medications?