Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-414 — NE Code / Chapter 28 / Section 28-414
View Statute 28-414
Status: in_force

(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section or section 28-412 or when administered directly by a practitioner to an ultimate user, a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 shall not be dispensed without a prescription from a practitioner authorized to prescribe. All such prescriptions shall be subject to section 38-1,146 . No prescription for a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 shall be filled more than six months from the date of issuance. A prescription for a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 shall not be refilled.

(2)(a) Except as provided in subdivision (2)(b) of this section, a prescription for controlled substances listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 must contain the following information prior to being filled by a pharmacist or dispensing practitioner: (i) Patient's name and address, (ii) name of the drug, device, or biological, (iii) strength of the drug or biological, if applicable, (iv) dosage form of the drug or biological, (v) quantity of the drug, device, or biological prescribed, (vi) directions for use, (vii) date of issuance, (viii) prescribing practitioner's name and address, and (ix) Drug Enforcement Administration number of the prescribing practitioner.

(b) After consultation with the prescribing practitioner, a pharmacist may add or change the dosage form, drug strength, drug quantity, directions for use, and issue date for a prescription for a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 .

(c) If the prescription is a written paper prescription, the paper prescription must contain the prescribing practitioner's manual signature. If the prescription is an electronic prescription, the electronic prescription must contain all of the elements in subdivision (2)(a) of this section, must be digitally signed, and must be transmitted to and received by the pharmacy electronically to meet all of the requirements of the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as it existed on January 1, 2014, pertaining to electronic prescribing of controlled substances.

(3)(a) In emergency situations, a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 may be dispensed pursuant to an oral prescription reduced to writing in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, except for the prescribing practitioner's signature, and bearing the word "emergency".

(b) For purposes of this section, emergency situation means a situation in which a prescribing practitioner determines that (i) immediate administration of the controlled substance is necessary for proper treatment of the patient, (ii) no appropriate alternative treatment is available, including administration of a drug which is not a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 , and (iii) it is not reasonably possible for the prescribing practitioner to provide a signed, written or electronic prescription to be presented to the person dispensing the controlled substance prior to dispensing.

(4)(a) In nonemergency situations:

(i) A controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 may be dispensed pursuant to a facsimile of a written, signed paper prescription if the original written, signed paper prescription is presented to the pharmacist for review before the controlled substance is dispensed, except as provided in subdivision (a)(ii) or (iii) of this subsection;

(ii) A narcotic drug listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 may be dispensed pursuant to a facsimile of a written, signed paper prescription (A) to be compounded for direct parenteral administration to a patient for the purpose of home infusion therapy or (B) for administration to a patient enrolled in a hospice care program and bearing the words "hospice patient"; and

(iii) A controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 may be dispensed pursuant to a facsimile of a written, signed paper prescription for administration to a resident of a long-term care facility.

(b) For purposes of subdivisions (a)(ii) and (iii) of this subsection, a facsimile of a written, signed paper prescription shall serve as the original written prescription and shall be maintained in accordance with subsection (1) of section 28-414.03 .

(5)(a) A prescription for a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 may be partially filled if the pharmacist does not supply the full quantity prescribed and he or she makes a notation of the quantity supplied on the face of the prescription or in the electronic record. The remaining portion of the prescription may be filled no later than thirty days after the date on which the prescription is written. The pharmacist shall notify the prescribing practitioner if the remaining portion of the prescription is not or cannot be filled within such period. No further quantity may be supplied after such period without a new written, signed paper prescription or electronic prescription.

(b) A prescription for a controlled substance listed in Schedule II of section 28-405 written for a patient in a long-term care facility or for a patient with a medical diagnosis documenting a terminal illness may be partially filled. Such prescription shall bear the words "terminally ill" or "long-term care facility patient" on its face or in the electronic record. If there is any question whether a patient may be classified as having a terminal illness, the pharmacist shall contact the prescribing practitioner prior to partially filling the prescription. Both the pharmacist and the prescribing practitioner have a corresponding responsibility to assure that the controlled substance is for a terminally ill patient. For each partial filling, the dispensing pharmacist shall record on the back of the prescription or on another appropriate record, uniformly maintained and readily retrievable, the date of the partial filling, quantity dispensed, remaining quantity authorized to be dispensed, and the identification of the dispensing pharmacist. The total quantity of controlled substances listed in Schedule II which is dispensed in all partial fillings shall not exceed the total quantity prescribed. A prescription for a Schedule II controlled substance for a patient in a long-term care facility or a patient with a medical diagnosis documenting a terminal illness is valid for sixty days from the date of issuance or until discontinuance of the prescription, whichever occurs first.

Laws 1977, LB 38, § 74;

Laws 1988, LB 273, § 5;

Laws 1995, LB 406, § 7;

Laws 1996, LB 1108, § 4;

Laws 1997, LB 307, § 8;

Laws 1999, LB 594, § 4;

Laws 2000, LB 819, § 65;

Laws 2001, LB 398, § 12;

Laws 2004, LB 1005, § 2;

Laws 2005, LB 382, § 3;

Laws 2007, LB463, § 1122;

Laws 2009, LB195, § 3;

Laws 2011, LB179, § 1;

Laws 2014, LB811, § 6;

Laws 2017, LB166, § 3;

Laws 2021, LB583, § 1;

Laws 2024, LB1215, § 4.

The State did not violate the defendant's due process privacy rights through its warrantless, investigatory access to her prescription records; the reporting and monitoring of prescription records was a rational exercise of the State's broad police powers. State v. Wiedeman, 286 Neb. 193, 835 N.W.2d 698 (2013).

The State did not violate the defendant's due process privacy rights through its warrantless, investigatory access to her prescription records; the reporting and monitoring of prescription records was a rational exercise of the State's broad police powers. State v. Wiedeman, 286 Neb. 193, 835 N.W.2d 698 (2013).