SECTION 315.15. Access Requirements

(a) Effective March 1, 2020, a pharmacist before dispensing an outpatient prescription for an opioid, benzodiazepine, barbiturate, or carisoprodol for a patient shall consult the Texas Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) database to review the patient's controlled substance history. The dispensing pharmacist of an outpatient prescription shall be responsible for the review of the PMP database prior to dispensing the prescription, unless the pharmacy has designated another pharmacist whose identity has been recorded in the pharmacy's data processing system as responsible for PMP review.

(b) The duty to consult the PMP database as described in subsection (a) of this section does not apply in the following circumstances:

(1) the prescribing individual practitioner is a veterinarian;

(2) it is clearly noted in the prescription record that the patient has a diagnosis of cancer or sickle cell disease or is in hospice care; or

(3) the pharmacist is unable to access the PMP after making and documenting a good faith effort to do so.

(c) If a pharmacist uses pharmacy management systems that integrate data from the PMP, a review of the pharmacy management system with the integrated data shall be deemed compliant with the review of the PMP database as required under §481.0764(a) of the Texas Health and Safety Code and in subsection (a) of this section.

(d) Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians acting at the direction of a pharmacist may only access information contained in the PMP as authorized in §481.076 of the Texas Controlled Substances Act. A person who is authorized to access the PMP may only do so utilizing that person's assigned identifier (i.e., login and password) and may not use the assigned identifier of another person. Unauthorized access of PMP information is a violation of Texas Controlled Substances Act, the Texas Pharmacy Act, and board rules.

Source Note: The provisions of this §315.15 adopted to be effective December 6, 2018, 43 TexReg 7788; amended to be effective June 20, 2019, 44 TexReg 2957; amended to be effective December 9, 2019, 44 TexReg 7548; amended to be effective March 14, 2021, 46 TexReg 1641