Topic primers
A quick on-ramp for each area: the handful of facts that anchor it. Read one, then go practice. These are a launchpad, not a lecture.
PRIMER · Federal Requirements
Federal requirements, the essentials
- Schedule I has no accepted medical use; Schedules II to V step down in abuse potential.
- Schedule II prescriptions cannot be refilled; III and IV allow up to 5 refills within 6 months.
- DEA forms: 222 orders C-I/C-II stock, 106 reports theft or loss, 41 records destruction.
- An emergency oral Schedule II order needs a written follow-up within 7 days.
- Sublingual nitroglycerin is exempt from child-resistant packaging.
PRIMER · Federal Requirements
Controlled substances at the counter
- Schedule II: no refills, and no phoned-in orders except a genuine emergency.
- Schedule III-IV: up to 5 refills within 6 months of the issue date.
- Order Schedule I-II stock with DEA Form 222 or its electronic equivalent, CSOS.
- A DEA number has a built-in checksum you can verify from the digits.
- Watch for red flags: early refills, cash for large opioid quantities, prescribers far from the patient.
Showing Federal Requirements only. See every primer.