Camlane Loc: North Carolina

You wouldn't need Internet service. The prescription is from the doctor to the pharmacy.

OldEarl Loc: Northeast Kansas

I am on a pain medication that is federally regulated. I am required to take in a physical prescription every 30 days. How would this be handled if I lived in New York--which apparently, like California, does not consider itself to be bound by the Commerce Clause of the US Constituion.

MikeFromMT Loc: So Cal & MT

The practice of medicine is regulated by state by state regulations. Licensure is to an individual state and is not transferable unless relicense procedure is followed. As such, in most cases, prescriptions written in one state might or might not be accepted in another. This is especially true of controlled substances. Federal law dictates which drugs are listed as federally controlled substances and what guidelines must be followed on a national basis in order to prescribe these. Individual states, however, can place more restrictions on prescribing these drugs as is deemed necessary in that state. For example, some states require a separate drug registration by physicians to prescribe controlled drugs (WY, eg) whereas others, like CA, only require the physician to be licensed as a practitioner and have a DEA number. CA does require class II drugs have a maximum of 30 days and a physical Rx be written after face to face meeting with the doctor. This may be inconvenient for you, but as a physician, yes it is onerous to us as well, but it is a protection for both the patient and physician. There is a lot of Rx drug abuse going on and Rx drugs account for more deaths than illegal ones. I work for an HMO so I am not getting paid by the patient and so the added visit does not add to my income and most doctors would rather forego the added income for convenience, but not for safety.

OldEarl Loc: Northeast Kansas

My understanding was that the paper prescription was required by DEA.

My reference to People's Democratic Republic of California dealt with the attempts to prevent pass through commerce in firearms travelling from the ports of Long Beach and San Francisco to the interior of the United States.

jimmya Loc: Phoenix

Hi Jerry. I'm with the VA and they've been doing all electronic for a long time. Even if it's a special script, as in pick up at the pharmacy, it's all electronic. No problems with the VA so far.
Good luck

normpel Loc: Mass, R.I., Maryland

These regulations are designed to reduce fraud. Hence they reduce the illegal sale of prescription drugs which then reduces deaths caused by overdose and general abuse. That is the only benefit that the State receives. You would be surprised by the number of counterfeit Rx's that are submitted to pharmacists every day. You cannot obtain a Schedule 1 drug-it's intended only for researchers who must submit a special form to their supplier. (Heroin is an example). Schedule II drugs like morphine, by definition, cannot be refilled. BTW, Sudafed sales are kept track of even if you go to different pharmacies--it is a national database system. And yes, Sudafed is still used by clandestine labs to make methamphetamine. This national registry system has made a huge difference in curtailing meth labs. I was a pharmacist for over 50 years.

normpel Loc: Mass, R.I., Maryland

Here's something you must know about electronic prescriptions. You can be at the doctor's office and see him/her send an RX electronically. Then you run to the pharmacy and they tell you they never received the order or it isn't ready yet. What happened? The e-Rx has to go to a clearing house first. This is because your doctor uses a different computer operating system than your pharmacy. The clearing house then reconfigures the electronic Rx so that the message is compatible with the computer system the pharmacy uses. Sometimes this can take a few hours to get processed by the middle man. So don't assume the Rx automatically goes to your pharmacy when it is sent.

quagmire Loc: Greenwood,South Carolina

My Doc told me it was because of their inability to write
clearly.

JD750 Loc: SoCal

I can order on Digikey up until 6 pm Pacific time, and get it the next morning by 8 AM. My experience over 30+ years (by # different items, NOT by total count) is 99.99% accuracy.

One cannot get a quote, let alone anywhere near this, from the medical/industrial complex.

What is the difference?

Gov't involvement.

Desert Gecko Loc: desert southwest, USA

Funny, here in Nevada doctors must use paper for schedule one drugs such as narcotic pain meds, Ritalin, etc., and they cannot electronically submit such a prescription under any circumstance. Oh, and these paper prescriptions are limited to a non-refillable 30-day supply, requiring a face-to-face meet with the doctor for a new prescription every month.