Missouri Laws 195.550 – Electronic prescriptions required, when, exceptions — violations
1. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section or any other law to the contrary, beginning January 1, 2021, no person shall issue any prescription in this state for any Schedule II, III, or IV controlled substance unless the prescription is made by electronic prescription from the person issuing the prescription to a pharmacy, except for prescriptions:
(1) Issued by veterinarians;
Terms Used In Missouri Laws 195.550
- Controlled substance: a drug, substance, or immediate precursor in Schedules I through V listed in this chapter. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- Dispense: to deliver a narcotic or controlled dangerous drug to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner including the prescribing, administering, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the substance for such delivery. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- Dispenser: means a practitioner who dispenses. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- Person: an individual, corporation, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, joint venture, association, or any other legal or commercial entity. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- Pharmacist: a licensed pharmacist as defined by the laws of this state, and where the context so requires, the owner of a store or other place of business where controlled substances are compounded or dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- Practitioner: a physician, dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, veterinarian, scientific investigator, pharmacy, hospital or other person licensed, registered or otherwise permitted by this state to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to or administer or to use in teaching or chemical analysis, a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in this state, or a pharmacy, hospital or other institution licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to or administer a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research. See Missouri Laws 195.010
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, insular possession thereof, and any area subject to the legal authority of the United States of America. See Missouri Laws 195.010
(2) Issued in circumstances where electronic prescribing is not available due to temporary technological or electrical failure;
(3) Issued by a practitioner to be dispensed by a pharmacy located outside the state;
(4) Issued when the prescriber and dispenser are the same entity;
(5) Issued that include elements that are not supported by the most recently implemented version of the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs Prescriber/Pharmacist Interface SCRIPT Standard;
(6) Issued by a practitioner for a drug that the federal Food and Drug Administration requires the prescription to contain certain elements that are not able to be accomplished with electronic processing;
(7) Issued by a practitioner allowing for the dispensing of a nonpatient specific prescription pursuant to a standing order, approved protocol for drug therapy, collaborative drug management or comprehensive medication management, in response to a public health emergency, or other circumstances where the practitioner may issue a nonpatient specific prescription;
(8) Issued by a practitioner prescribing a drug under a research protocol;
(9) Issued by practitioners who have received an annual waiver, or a renewal thereof, from the requirement to use electronic prescribing, pursuant to a process established in regulation by the department of health and senior services, due to economic hardship, technological limitations, or other exceptional circumstances demonstrated by the practitioner;
(10) Issued by a practitioner under circumstances where, notwithstanding the practitioner’s present ability to make an electronic prescription as required by this subsection, such practitioner reasonably determines that it would be impractical for the patient to obtain substances prescribed by electronic prescription in a timely manner, and such delay would adversely impact the patient’s medical condition; or
(11) Issued where the patient specifically requests a written prescription.
2. A pharmacist who receives a written, oral, or faxed prescription is not required to verify that the prescription properly falls under one of the exceptions from the requirement to electronically prescribe. Pharmacists may continue to dispense medications from otherwise valid written, oral, or fax prescriptions that are consistent with state and federal laws and regulations.
3. An individual who violates the provisions of this section may be subject to discipline by his or her professional licensing board.