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New Jersey News: Valid Prescription Dates for Refills
Reprinted from the July 2007 New Jersey Board of Pharmacy Newsletter.
A number of instances involving incorrect dates assigned to refill prescriptions have recently come to the Board’s attention. Specifically, a prescription is only valid for one year from the date that it is originally written; not one year from the date it is originally filled. It is acceptable to place information on the label to tell the patient how long a prescription may be refilled, but it may not be an automatic entry based on the date the prescription is first filled. According to New Jersey Administrative Code (NJAC) 13:39-7.3(a), a prescription “shall not be renewed without specific authorization of the prescriber, and the prescription may not be refilled after one year from the date of original prescription.” NJAC 13:39-7.3(a)1 further states that “Prescriptions marked “PRN” or other letters or words meaning refill as needed shall not be renewed beyond one year past the date of original prescription.” According to NJAC 13:39-7.3(b), “When the renewals listed on the original prescription have been depleted, no additional renewals may be added to the original prescription.” In order to dispense a medication after all of the renewals have been depleted or after more than one year has passed since the prescription was originally written, the pharmacist must obtain authorization from the prescriber for a new prescription.
