§ 281 — Official New York state prescription forms

§ 281. Official New York state prescription forms. 1. In addition to\nthe requirements of section sixty-eight hundred ten of the education law\nor article thirty-three of this chapter, all prescriptions written in\nthis state by a person authorized by this state to issue such\nprescriptions shall be on serialized official New York state\nprescription forms provided by the department. Such forms shall be\nfurnished to practitioners authorized to write prescriptions and to\ninstitutional dispensers, and shall be non-reproducible and\nnon-transferable. The commissioner, in consultation with the\ncommissioner of education, may promulgate emergency regulations for the\nelectronic transmission of prescriptions from prescribers to pharmacists\nor for ordering and filling requirements of prescription drugs for\nprescriptions written for recipients eligible for medical assistance\npursuant to title eleven of article five of the social services law, for\nparticipants in the program for elderly pharmaceutical insurance\ncoverage pursuant to title three of article two of the elder law and for\nprescriptions written pursuant to article thirty-three of this chapter.\nNothing in this section shall prohibit the commissioner in consultation\nwith the commissioner of education from promulgating any additional\nemergency regulations in furtherance of this subdivision.\n 2. The commissioner, in consultation with the commissioner of\neducation, shall promulgate regulations requiring that prescription\nforms and electronic prescriptions include: (a) a section wherein\nprescribers may indicate whether an individual is limited English\nproficient, as defined in section sixty-eight hundred twenty-nine of the\neducation law; and (b) if the patient is limited English proficient, a\nline where the prescriber may specify the preferred language indicated\nby the patient. Failure to include such indication on the part of the\nprescriber shall not invalidate the prescription.\n 3. On or before December thirty-first, two thousand twelve, the\ncommissioner shall promulgate regulations, in consultation with the\ncommissioner of education, establishing standards for electronic\nprescriptions. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section or\nany other law to the contrary, effective three years subsequent to the\ndate on which such regulations are promulgated, no person shall issue\nany prescription in this state unless such prescription is made by\nelectronic prescription from the person issuing the prescription to a\npharmacy in accordance with such regulatory standards, except for\nprescriptions: (a) issued by veterinarians; (b) issued in circumstances\nwhere electronic prescribing is not available due to temporary\ntechnological or electrical failure, as set forth in regulation; (c)\nissued by practitioners who have received a waiver or a renewal thereof\nfor a specified period determined by the commissioner, not to exceed one\nyear, from the requirement to use electronic prescribing, pursuant to a\nprocess established in regulation by the commissioner, in consultation\nwith the commissioner of education, due to economic hardship,\ntechnological limitations that are not reasonably within the control of\nthe practitioner, or other exceptional circumstance demonstrated by the\npractitioner; (d) issued by a practitioner under circumstances where,\nnotwithstanding the practitioner's present ability to make an electronic\nprescription as required by this subdivision, such practitioner\nreasonably determines that it would be impractical for the patient to\nobtain substances prescribed by electronic prescription in a timely\nmanner, and such delay would adversely impact the patient's medical\ncondition, provided that if such prescription is for a controlled\nsubstance, the quantity of controlled substances does not exceed a five\nday supply if the controlled substance were used in accordance with the\ndirections for use; or (e) issued by a practitioner to be dispensed by a\npharmacy located outside the state, as set forth in regulation.\n 3-a. A pharmacy that receives an electronic prescription from the\nperson issuing the prescription may, if the prescription has not been\ndispensed and at the request of the patient or a person authorized to\nmake the request on behalf of the patient, immediately transfer or\nforward such prescription to an alternative pharmacy designated by the\nrequesting party.\n 4. In the case of a prescription for a controlled substance issued by\na practitioner under paragraph (b) of subdivision three of this section,\nthe practitioner shall indicate in the patient's health record that the\nprescription was issued other than electronically due to temporary\ntechnological or electrical failure.\n 5. In the case of a prescription for a controlled substance issued by\na practitioner under paragraph (d) or (e) of subdivision three of this\nsection, the practitioner shall, upon issuing such prescription,\nindicate in the patient's health record either that the prescription was\nissued other than electronically because it (a) was impractical to issue\nan electronic prescription in a timely manner and such delay would have\nadversely impacted the patient's medical condition, or (b) was to be\ndispensed by a pharmacy located outside the state.\n 6. The waiver process established in regulation pursuant to paragraph\n(c) of subdivision three of this section shall provide that a\npractitioner prescribing under a waiver must notify the department in\nwriting promptly upon gaining the capability to use electronic\nprescribing, and that a waiver shall terminate within a specified period\nof time after the practitioner gains such capability.\n * 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section or any other\nlaw to the contrary, a practitioner shall not be required to issue\nprescriptions electronically if he or she certifies to the department,\nin a manner specified by the department, that he or she will not issue\nmore than twenty-five prescriptions during a twelve month period.\nPrescriptions in both oral and written form for both controlled\nsubstances and non-controlled substances shall be included in\ndetermining whether the practitioner will reach the limit of twenty-five\nprescriptions.\n (a) A certification shall be submitted in advance of the twelve-month\ncertification period, except that a twelve-month certification submitted\non or before July first, two thousand sixteen, may begin March\ntwenty-seven, two thousand sixteen.\n (b) A practitioner who has made a certification under this subdivision\nmay submit an additional certification on or before the expiration of\nthe current twelve-month certification period, for a maximum of three\ntwelve-month certifications.\n (c) A practitioner may make a certification under this subdivision\nregardless of whether he or she has previously received a waiver under\nparagraph (c) of subdivision three of this section.\n * NB Repealed June 1, 2026\n