Original prescription drug orders for noncontrolled drugs may be transferred between pharmacies for the purpose of refill dispensing provided that the transfer is communicated directly between 2 pharmacists or pharmacy interns, or between a transferring pharmacist or pharmacy intern and a receiving pharmacy technician, and the following additional requirements are met:
1. Duties of Transferring Pharmacist The transferring pharmacist shall:
A. Enter the following information in the dispensing record of the original prescription drug order created pursuant to Section 6 or 7 of this chapter: (1) A notation that a copy has been issued and that the original prescription is void;(2) The date of the transfer;(3) The name of the transferring pharmacist;(4) The name and address of the pharmacy to which the prescription was transferred; and(5) The name of the pharmacist who received the prescription information; andB. Not issue further refills once the prescription has been transferred.2. Duties of Receiving Pharmacist or Pharmacy Technician The receiving pharmacist shall:
A. Enter the word "TRANSFER" in the dispensing record of the transferred prescription drug order created pursuant to Section 5 or 6 of this chapter;B. Document the following information in the dispensing record: (1) The name and address of the patient;(2) The name and address of the practitioner;(3) The date of issuance of the original prescription drug order;(4) The number of valid refills remaining on the prescription drug order and the date of the most recent refill;(5) The name and address of the transferring pharmacy and the transferring pharmacist; and(6) The original prescription number from which the prescription information was transferred;C. Retain both the original and transferred prescription drug orders as if they were original prescriptions.3. Electronic Transfers Between Networked Pharmacies Pharmacies accessing a common electronic file or database used to maintain required dispensing information are not required to transfer prescription drug orders or information for dispensing purposes between or among pharmacies participating in the same common prescription file, provided, however, that any such common file shall contain completed records of each prescription drug order and refill dispensed, and, further, that a hard copy record, or notation on the computer record, of each prescription drug order transferred or accessed for purposes of refilling shall be generated and maintained at the pharmacy refilling the prescription drug order or to which the prescription drug order is transferred.
4. Scope of Transfer The receiving pharmacist may refill a transferred prescription drug order for up to the number of remaining refills authorized by the transferred prescription drug order or up to 15 months from the date of the original issue, whichever first occurs.
02-392 C.M.R. ch. 4, § 19-8