1. (a) A prescription drug order that is transmitted by an electronic device which sends an exact copy image to the receiver (pharmacy) over telephone lines.

2. (b) Faxing Schedule II prescriptions.

   1. (1)

      1. (A) Faxing a Schedule II prescription for a home infusion or intravenous pain therapy patient, or both. A prescription written for a Schedule II narcotic substance to be compounded for direct administration to a home infusion patient by parenteral, intravenous, intramuscular, subcutaneous, or intraspinal infusion may be transmitted directly from the prescribing practitioner, by the practitioner or the practitioner’s agent, to the pharmacy by facsimile.
      2. (B)

3. (i) The facsimile serves as the original written prescription.

   1. (ii) This exception does not apply to oral dose medications.

      1. (iii) Also see 17 CAR § 160-2401.

   2. (2)

      1. (A) Faxing a Schedule II prescription for a long-term care patient. A prescription written for a Schedule II substance for a resident of a long-term care facility may be transmitted directly from the prescribing individual practitioner, or the practitioner’s agent, to the provider pharmacy by facsimile.
      2. (B) The facsimile serves as the original written prescription.
      3. (C) See also 17 CAR § 160-2401.

   3. (3)

      1. (A) A prescription written for a Schedule II substance for a home hospice patient may be transmitted by the practitioner or the practitioner’s agent to the dispensing pharmacy by facsimile.
      2. (B) It must be noted on the prescription that this is a hospice patient.
      3. (C) The facsimile serves as the original written prescription.

      4. (D) See 17 CAR § 160-2401.

         1. (c) Faxing from a long-term care facility to a pharmacy. A pharmacist may accept a fax prescription from a long-term care facility provided that:

   4. (1) For Schedule II drugs, all requirements of a written prescription are met including:

      1. (A) The prescriber’s signature on the faxed order;
      2. (B) It is faxed by the nurse/person the physician and the long-term care facility has designated as his or her agent to transmit the order; and
      3. (C) It must contain the nurse/person’s signature;

   5. (2) For drugs other than Schedule II, the order:

      1. (A) Is faxed by the nurse/person the physician and the long-term care facility has designated as his or her agent to transmit the order; and
      2. (B) Must contain the nurse/person’s signature; and

   6. (3) The pharmacist verifies the fax is from the machine in the long-term care facility.

      1. (d) Faxed prescriptions.
   7. (1) A pharmacist may dispense directly a controlled substance listed in Schedules III, IV, or V that is a prescription drug, or any legend drug, only pursuant to either a written prescription signed by a prescribing individual practitioner or a facsimile of a written signed prescription transmitted directly by the prescribing practitioner, or the practitioner’s agent, to the pharmacy or pursuant to an oral prescription made by a prescribing individual practitioner, or the practitioner’s agent, and either entered into the pharmacy’s electronic prescription system or promptly reduced to writing by the pharmacist.
   8. (2) All laws, rules, and regulations applicable to oral prescription drug orders shall also apply to all facsimile orders, including but not limited to generic substitution, maintenance of records, information required, etc.
   9. (3) A prescription order transmitted by facsimile device shall contain all prescription information required by federal and state law.

   10. (4)

       1. (A) A pharmacist may dispense new prescription orders transmitted by fax only when signed by the prescribing practitioner and transmitted from the practitioner’s office or a long-term care facility in compliance with all sections of this part.

       2. (B) Any faxed new prescription order that is not signed must be:

          1. (i) Treated as a verbal order; and
          2. (ii) Verified to the pharmacist’s satisfaction that it is legitimate.

   11. (5) The original fax shall be:

       1. (A) Assigned the number of the prescription dispensed; and
       2. (B) Maintained in pharmacy records for at least two (2) years.
   12. (6) The receiving fax machine must be in the prescription department of the pharmacy to protect patient-authorized or pharmacist-authorized prescribing practitioner confidentiality and security.

   13. (7)

       1. (A) Refill authorizations for prescriptions, other than Schedule II, may be transmitted using a facsimile device.

       2. (B) Any faxed authorization to renew or refill a prescription that is not signed must be:

          1. (i) Treated as a verbal order; and
          2. (ii) Verified to the pharmacist’s satisfaction that it is legitimate.

4. (e) Patient/prescriber consideration.

   1. (1) No pharmacist shall enter into any agreement with a practitioner or healthcare facility concerning the provision of facsimile machine services or equipment that adversely affects any person’s freedom to choose the pharmacy at which a prescription will be filled.
   2. (2) A pharmacy/pharmacist shall not provide a fax machine to a prescriber, a long-term care facility, or any healthcare facility free of charge or for less than the pharmacy’s/pharmacist’s cost.
   3. (3) No agreement between a prescriber and a pharmacy shall require that prescription orders be transmitted by facsimile machine from the prescriber to only that pharmacy.
   4. (4) A pharmacy/pharmacist shall not enter into any agreement whereby the pharmacy/pharmacist pays to obtain the prescription order by fax or any electronic data transfer.

Codification Notes: This section as promulgated prior to codification into the Code of Arkansas Rules provided as follows: “(10/12/93 Amended 2/15/95, 10/14/1997, 7/10/2009, 5/31/2014, and 5/10/2022)"