I'm here sitting in my GF's dental office waiting to get her wisdom teeth pulled... One of the assistant just walked out and asked me if I want to get the prescription they are going to write filled here or take it to a pharmacy. They charge $25 per RX. And I'm just like is this even legal? They don't have a pharmacy... They don't have a pharmacist on staff period! Also, I thought you can't write and dispense at the same location by the prescriber. This is confusing the sh&t out of me. They are giving her ketoprofen, norco, and amoxicillin... What is this...
Dental office dispense meds?!
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Perfectly legal in PA. In other states, your mileage may vary.
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Legal in MD too. But $25 for each of those meds is highway robbery.
In Florida, you have to give the option of using another pharmacy, which it appears they did. I work inpatient, so I am not sure if they call fill controlled substances.
Yeah... That's why I'm only getting the ketoprofen here since my pharmacy charges 22.94 or something and we would have to order it. She's getting all 4 pulled at the same time and they haven't grow out yet, so the dentist have to cut her gum... Anybody else went through this? How much pain is she going to be in?
They didn't offer it until she told them that I was a pharmacist... They were just going to let her get it with them. I'm pretty sure if I'm not sitting in the office right now, they wouldn't have offered her that option.
Hmmm. I'm still not sure how they dispense Norco without a DEA number or permit. You should ask them how they do it.
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Every time they send a prescription out, they are letting money walk out the door. My dentist's office is part of a chain and they do this as well. They stock everything that the dentist would prescribe in the office. They even have posters in the waiting room stating that they are 'improving patient care' , allowing a one stop shop for dental care and prescriptions, no need to drive to pharmacy and wait in line.
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In Connecticut at least, prescribers with a valid DEA can order and dispense controls at their office. They have to keep meticulous records because drug control is really cracking down lately...
It's the same principle as a veterinarian stocking meds at their practice.
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This is the terrible argument used by people who are anti-pharmacist prescribing (including many pharmacists and pharmacy students on this very board). It's not against the law. If conflicts of interest were illegal in medicine, then any physician/dentist/podiatrist/ARNP/PA/whoever who identifies the need for a procedure AND would benefit financially from said procedure would not be allowed to also perform that procedure. Funny how people rarely point this out when this silly conflict of interest argument comes up. Why should we pick on pharmacy when it comes to conflicts of interest?
Generally, this sort of practice is legal in most states. The scope of said practice will vary in each state, however this is not a huge worry as most provider-based dispensaries will only fill meds that are of immediate need to the patient or are extremely specialized to the scope of practice.
However, I am curious if such dispensaries can bill a PBM for such products.
However, I am curious if such dispensaries can bill a PBM for such products.
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After my wisdom teeth were extracted I was miserable the 1st day, uncomfortable the 2nd day, and reasonably okay by day 3.
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Some of our frequent fliers would love this. No PBM/central check of the narcotics they've been getting from pain management/emergency rooms. Sounds like a win win for dentist and patient. Hopefully they don't forget to list all allergies and medications they're on.
It is legal - at least for physicians - in most states. My state medical license specifically includes a line authorizing the distribution of pharmaceuticals.
However, I am not aware of anyone in our system who does it. Our urgent care sites have a prescription "vending machine" in the lobby, but that is a different issue. From what I understand, it is almost never actually used.
Basically, almost every physician is going to make more money seeing an additional patient rather than dabbling in dispensing traditional prescriptions. Of course, situations like medical oncology and chemotherapy where they actually administer the medication are completely different.
Every once in a while some vendor stops by and tries to convince us of the untold fortunes we could make by dispensing prescriptions. However, it rarely makes financial sense unless you are bending/breaking the law. I am not even sure if my malpractice insurance would cover the "practice of pharmacy." Plus, I would not want to get rid of the safety factor that review by a pharmacist provides. In the "olden days" we would "dispense" blister packs of medication in the ED when the pharmacies were closed. However, now in most areas there is at least one 24 hour pharmacy, so most places have very gratefully stopped doing even that.
So, yes, it can legally be done - at least in some states. However, it rarely makes good business sense.
However, I am not aware of anyone in our system who does it. Our urgent care sites have a prescription "vending machine" in the lobby, but that is a different issue. From what I understand, it is almost never actually used.
Basically, almost every physician is going to make more money seeing an additional patient rather than dabbling in dispensing traditional prescriptions. Of course, situations like medical oncology and chemotherapy where they actually administer the medication are completely different.
Every once in a while some vendor stops by and tries to convince us of the untold fortunes we could make by dispensing prescriptions. However, it rarely makes financial sense unless you are bending/breaking the law. I am not even sure if my malpractice insurance would cover the "practice of pharmacy." Plus, I would not want to get rid of the safety factor that review by a pharmacist provides. In the "olden days" we would "dispense" blister packs of medication in the ED when the pharmacies were closed. However, now in most areas there is at least one 24 hour pharmacy, so most places have very gratefully stopped doing even that.
So, yes, it can legally be done - at least in some states. However, it rarely makes good business sense.
Probably would not need to. Amoxicillin or clinda, peridex, ibuprofen, T#3, norco... that's pretty much everything a dentist uses, and none of them are very expensive.
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