Law: Prescription Limits
What are Prescription Drug Limit Laws?
A law setting prescribing or dispensing limits for controlled substances was included in the resource if it limits:
- The number of days after a prescription is issued during which a pharmacist is allowed to fill a prescription
- The quantity prescribed and/or dispensed of a controlled substance for no more than a specified days’ supply (including laws limiting the quantity prescribed and/or dispensed during an emergency period)
- The number of days’ supply for an individual practitioner prescribing multiple controlled substance medications
- The quantity or days supplied in refills for a controlled substance medication
- The number of days that a benefit plan will pay for (e.g., states where Medicaid will not pay for a new prescription until 85% of the days’ supply has elapsed)
- The quantity or days’ supply of controlled substances prescribed orally (including medications prescribed during an emergency period)
- The quantity or days’ supply of controlled substances prescribed by health care practitioners other than a physician (physician assistants, nurse practitioners, etc.)
States with Prescription Drug Limit Laws
35 States: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Note: All laws enacted as of August 31, 2010.
Prescription Limit Law Features by State
Features |
Aspects of Feature |
States |
Limits to the number of days’ supply
|
For all prescriptions |
|
For specific schedules |
AL, CA, CO, DE, IA, KY, MA, MS, MO, NV, NH, NY, NC, SC, UT, VT, WV |
|
For specific drugs or class of drugs |
||
For refills |
||
For emergency prescriptions |
AL, AZ, CO, CT, DC, FL, KS, LA, MD, MS, NV, NY, NC, PA, SC, TX |
|
For hospital pharmacies |
||
For members of certain benefit plans |
AR, CA, CT, DE, FL, IL, ME, MD, MN, MS, NJ, NY, NC, OK, PA, RI, TX, WY |
|
On multiple prescriptions |
||
For nurse practitioners |
||
For oral prescriptions |
||
Limits based on dosage amounts
|
Limits based on schedule |
|
Limits based on specific drugs or classes of drugs |
||
Oral prescriptions |
||
For specific schedule(s) |
||
Based on a benefit plan or reimbursement |
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