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CS/SB 262 — Dispensing Medicinal Drugs
by Military and Veterans Affairs, Space, and Domestic Security Committee and Senator Harrell
This summary is provided for information only and does not represent the opinion of any Senator, Senate Officer, or Senate Office.
Prepared by: Health Policy Committee (HP)
The bill amends s. 465.019, F.S., to authorize medicinal drugs to be dispensed by a hospital that operates a Class II or Class III institutional pharmacy to a patient of the hospital’s emergency department or a hospital inpatient upon discharge if a prescriber treating the patient in the hospital determines that:
- The medicinal drug is warranted; and
- Community pharmacy services are not readily accessible to the patient, geographically or otherwise.
If prescribing and dispensing occurs, the bill requires that a supply of the drug must be dispensed that will last for the greater of up to 48 hours or through the end of the next business day, and that during a declared state of emergency, a 72-hour supply may be dispensed by a hospital located in an area affected by the emergency.
Any of these new circumstances that authorize the prescription of a controlled substance must comply with existing regulations and restrictions on the prescribing of a controlled substance.
The bill has an insignificant fiscal impact on the Department of Health that can be absorbed within existing resources.
If approved by the Governor, these provisions take effect July 1, 2021.
Vote: Senate 40-0; House 117-0