Tennessee Bill Would Allow Non-Patient-Specific Compounding During Drug Shortages

Tennessee lawmakers are considering legislation that would enable compounding pharmacies to create medicines without patient-specific prescriptions during drug shortages and other times when a product is not commercially available. The bill, sponsored by Senator Ferrell Haile (R) and Representative David Shepard (D), has already passed the state’s Senate and is still being debated in the House. Supporters of the measure argue that patient-specific prescriptions prevent life-saving medications from reaching patients during drug shortages, reports The Tennessean. Patient specificity for compounded prescriptions is cited by both Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and NABP as a vital safeguard in protecting patient health and preventing tragedies such as the meningitis outbreak that originated at the New England Compounding Center in Massachusetts. The importance of patient-specificity in compounded drugs is discussed in the article, “Compounding Pharmacy Information Sharing Network Available to Boards Soon: Data on Preparation of Patient-Specific-Drugs and Non-Patient Specific Drugs to Be Included,” in the April 2013 NABP Newsletter.