2013 South Carolina Code of Laws
Title 44 - Health
CHAPTER 53 - POISONS, DRUGS AND OTHER CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES
SECTION 44-53-360. Prescriptions.

(a) Except when dispensed directly by a practitioner, other than a pharmacist, to an ultimate user, or in emergency situations as prescribed by the Department by regulation, no controlled substance included in Schedule II may be dispensed without the written prescription of a practitioner. Prescriptions shall be retained in conformity with the requirements of Section 44-53-340. No prescription for a controlled substance in Schedule II may be refilled.

(b) A pharmacist may dispense a controlled substance included in Schedule III, IV, or V pursuant to either a written prescription signed by a practitioner, or a facsimile of a written, signed prescription, transmitted by the practitioner or the practitioner's agent to the pharmacy, or pursuant to an oral prescription, reduced promptly to writing and filed by the pharmacist. A prescription transmitted by facsimile must be received at the pharmacy as it was originally transmitted by facsimile and must include the name and address of the practitioner, the phone number for verbal confirmation, the time and date of transmission, and the name of the pharmacy intended to receive the transmission, as well as any other information required by federal or state law. Such prescription, when authorized, may not be refilled more than five times or later than six months after the date of the prescription unless renewed by the practitioner.

(c) No controlled substances included in any schedule may be distributed or dispensed for other than a medical purpose. No practitioner may dispense a Schedule II narcotic controlled substance for the purpose of maintaining the addiction of a narcotic dependent person outside of a facility or program approved by the Department of Health and Environmental Control. No practitioner may dispense a controlled substance outside of a bona fide practitioner-patient relationship.

(d) Unless specifically indicated in writing on the face of the prescription that it is to be refilled, and the number of times specifically indicated, no prescription may be refilled. The indication of "PRN" or "ad lib" or phrases, abbreviations, or symbols of like meaning shall not be construed as to exceed five refills or six months, whichever shall first occur. Preprinted refill instructions on the face of a prescription shall be disregarded by the dispenser unless an affirmative marking or other indication is made by the prescriber.

(e) Prescriptions for controlled substances in Schedule II with the exception of transdermal patches, must not exceed a thirty-one day supply. Prescriptions for Schedule II substances must be dispensed within ninety days of the date of issue, after which time they are void. Prescriptions for controlled substances in Schedules III through V, inclusive, must not exceed a ninety-day supply.

(f) Preprinted prescriptions for controlled substances in any schedule are prohibited.

(g) The Board shall, by rules and regulations, specify the manner by which prescriptions are filed.

(h) A prescription, in order to be effective in legalizing the possession of a controlled substance and eliminating the need for registration of the recipient, must be issued for legitimate medical purposes. The responsibility for the proper prescribing and dispensing of controlled substances is upon the prescribing practitioner, but a corresponding liability rests with the pharmacist who fills and ultimately dispenses the prescription. An order purporting to be a prescription issued to a drug dependent person, not in the course of generally accepted medical treatment, but for the purpose of providing the user with controlled substances sufficient to maintain his dependence upon the substance, or to provide him with quantities of controlled substances in great excess of normal dosage ranges as recommended by the manufacturer of the substance, is not a prescription within the meaning and intent of this article; and the person filling or dispensing such an order, as well as the person issuing it, shall be deemed in violation of this section.

(i) Excepting a mail order prescription dispensed in compliance with Chapter 43 of Title 40 for which the dispenser requires proper identification of the recipient, a prescription for a controlled substance in Schedules II through V may not be filled unless the dispenser knows the recipient or requires the recipient to produce a government issued photo identification, and the dispenser notes the identification source and number on the prescription, or in a readily retrievable log including:

(1) prescription number;

(2) date prescription filled;

(3) number and type of identification;

(4) initials of person obtaining and recording information.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 32-1510.48; 1971 (57) 800; 1974 (58) 2228; 1975 (59) 104; 1981 Act No. 79, Section 7; 2000 Act No. 355, Section 10; 2002 Act No. 365, Sections 2, 3, eff September 26, 2002; 2006 Act No. 396, Section 2, eff June 14, 2006; 2007 Act No. 71, Sections 1 to 3, eff June 13, 2007.