(3) A health care practitioner licensed by law to prescribe a medicinal drug who maintains a system of electronic health records as defined in s. 408.051(2)(c), or who prescribes medicinal drugs as an owner, an employee, or a contractor of a licensed health care facility or practice that maintains such a system and who is prescribing in his or her capacity as such an owner, an employee, or a contractor, may only electronically transmit prescriptions for such drugs. This requirement applies to such a health care practitioner upon renewal of the health care practitioner’s license or by July 1, 2021, whichever is earlier, but does not apply if:(a) The practitioner and the dispenser are the same entity;
(b) The prescription cannot be transmitted electronically under the most recently implemented version of the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs SCRIPT Standard;
(c) The practitioner has been issued a waiver by the department, not to exceed 1 year in duration, from the requirement to use electronic prescribing due to demonstrated economic hardship, technological limitations that are not reasonably within the control of the practitioner, or another exceptional circumstance demonstrated by the practitioner;
(d) The practitioner reasonably determines that it would be impractical for the patient in question to obtain a medicinal drug prescribed by electronic prescription in a timely manner and such delay would adversely impact the patient’s medical condition;
(e) The practitioner is prescribing a drug under a research protocol;
(f) The prescription is for a drug for which the federal Food and Drug Administration requires the prescription to contain elements that may not be included in electronic prescribing;
(g) The prescription is issued to an individual receiving hospice care or who is a resident of a nursing home facility; or
(h) The practitioner determines that it is in the best interest of the patient, or the patient determines that it is in his or her own best interest, to compare prescription drug prices among area pharmacies. The practitioner must document such determination in the patient’s medical record.
The department, in consultation with the Board of Medicine, the Board of Osteopathic Medicine, the Board of Podiatric Medicine, the Board of Dentistry, the Board of Nursing, and the Board of Optometry, may adopt rules to implement this subsection.
