§ 3381 — Sale and possession of hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles

§ 3381. Sale and possession of hypodermic syringes and hypodermic\nneedles. 1. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or furnish to\nanother person or persons, a hypodermic syringe or hypodermic needle\nexcept:\n (a) pursuant to a prescription of a practitioner, which for the\npurposes of this section shall include a patient specific prescription\nform as provided for in the education law; or\n (b) to persons who have been authorized by the commissioner to obtain\nand possess such instruments; or\n (c) by a pharmacy licensed under article one hundred thirty-seven of\nthe education law, health care facility licensed under article\ntwenty-eight of this chapter or a health care practitioner who is\notherwise authorized to prescribe the use of hypodermic needles or\nsyringes within his or her scope of practice; provided, however, that\nsuch sale or furnishing: (i) shall only be to a person eighteen years of\nage or older; and (ii) shall be in accordance with subdivision four of\nthis section; or\n (d) under subdivision three of this section.\n 2. Any person selling or furnishing a hypodermic syringe or hypodermic\nneedle pursuant to a prescription shall record upon the prescription,\nhis or her signature or electronic signature, and the date of the sale\nor furnishing of the hypodermic syringe or hypodermic needle. Such\nprescription shall be retained on file for a period of five years and be\nreadily accessible for inspection by any public officer or employee\nengaged in the enforcement of this section. Such prescription may be\nrefilled not more than the number of times specifically authorized by\nthe prescriber upon the prescription, provided however no such\nauthorization shall be effective for a period greater than two years\nfrom the date the prescription is signed.\n 3. The commissioner shall, subject to subdivision four of this\nsection, designate persons, or by regulation, classes of persons who may\nobtain hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles without prescription\nand the manner in which such transactions may take place and the records\nthereof which shall be maintained.\n 4. (a) A person eighteen years of age or older may obtain and possess\na hypodermic syringe or hypodermic needle pursuant to paragraph (c) of\nsubdivision one of this section.\n (b) Subject to regulations of the commissioner, a pharmacy licensed\nunder article one hundred thirty-seven of the education law, a health\ncare facility licensed under article twenty-eight of this chapter or a\nhealth care practitioner who is otherwise authorized to prescribe the\nuse of hypodermic needles or syringes within his or her scope of\npractice, may obtain and possess hypodermic needles or syringes for the\npurpose of selling or furnishing them pursuant to paragraph (c) of\nsubdivision one of this section or for the purpose of disposing of them.\n (c) Sale or furnishing of hypodermic syringes or hypodermic needles to\ndirect consumers pursuant to this subdivision by a pharmacy, health care\nfacility, or health care practitioner shall be accompanied by a safety\ninsert. Such safety insert shall be developed or approved by the\ncommissioner and shall include, but not be limited to, (i) information\non the proper use of hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles; (ii)\nthe risk of blood borne diseases that may result from the use of\nhypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles; (iii) methods for preventing\nthe transmission or contraction of blood borne diseases; (iv) proper\nhypodermic syringe and hypodermic needle disposal practices; (v)\ninformation on the dangers of injection drug use, and how to access drug\ntreatment; (vi) a toll-free phone number for information on the human\nimmunodeficiency virus; and (vii) information on the safe disposal of\nhypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles including the relevant\nprovisions of the environmental conservation law relating to the\nunlawful release of regulated medical waste. The safety insert shall be\nattached to or included in the hypodermic syringe and hypodermic needle\npackaging, or shall be given to the purchaser at the point of sale or\nfurnishing in brochure form.\n (d) In addition to the requirements of paragraph (c) of subdivision\none of this section, a pharmacy licensed under article one hundred\nthirty-seven of the education law may sell or furnish hypodermic needles\nor syringes only if such pharmacy stores such needles and syringes in a\nmanner that makes them available only to authorized personnel and not\nopenly available to customers.\n (e) A pharmacy registered under article one hundred thirty-seven of\nthe education law may offer counseling and referral services to\ncustomers purchasing hypodermic syringes for the purpose of: preventing\ninjection drug abuse; the provision of drug treatment; preventing and\ntreating hepatitis C; preventing drug overdose; testing for the human\nimmunodeficiency virus; and providing pre-exposure prophylaxis and\nnon-occupational post-exposure prophylaxis. The content of such\ncounseling and referral shall be at the professional discretion of the\npharmacist.\n (f) The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations necessary\nto implement the provisions of this subdivision which shall include: (i)\nstandards for advertising to the public the availability for retail sale\nor furnishing of hypodermic syringes or needles; and (ii) a requirement\nthat such pharmacies, health care facilities and health care\npractitioners cooperate in a safe disposal of used hypodermic needles or\nsyringes.\n (g) The commissioner may, upon the finding of a violation of this\nsection, suspend for a determinate period of time the sale or furnishing\nof syringes by a specific entity.\n 5. The provisions of this section shall not apply to farmers engaged\nin livestock production or to those persons supplying farmers engaged in\nlivestock production, provided that:\n (a) Hypodermic syringes and needles shall be stored in a secure,\nlocked storage container.\n (b) At any time the department may request a document outlining:\n (i) the number of hypodermic needles and syringes purchased over the\npast calendar year;\n (ii) a record of all hypodermic needles used over the past calendar\nyear; and\n (iii) a record of all hypodermic needles and syringes destroyed over\nthe past calendar year.\n (c) Hypodermic needles and syringes shall be destroyed in a manner\nconsistent with the provisions set forth in section thirty-three hundred\neighty-one-a of this article.\n