Sometimes, medications need to be moved to a new pharmacy due to availability, hours, accessibility, and other reasons outside of our control. Medication re-routing refers to transferring a prescription to a new pharmacy that is different from the one you initially chose to send your prescription to.
In this article, we will review what you can expect if you encounter a situation where medication needs to be re-routed. Being informed about when and how to make such a request is crucial to prevent unwanted delays.
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General Tips
Discuss Options with Your Pharmacist: Establishing a strong and ongoing connection with your pharmacist is important. This facilitates effective communication and ensures timely delivery of your medications. By consistently using the same pharmacy for all your prescription needs, you make the process more efficient and build trust and familiarity with your pharmacist. This maximizes the quality of care you receive.
National Medication Backorders: At times, certain medications may face a national shortage. In such cases, your pharmacy might experience a delay in filling your prescription. If your medication is affected, discuss alternative solutions with your provider.
Non-Controlled Prescriptions
The Process: Re-routing a standard prescription is easy and does not require any intervention from your care team. Pharmacies can send a non-controlled medication to another pharmacy, regardless of whether it is the same pharmacy chain or not. The process is quick and typically takes about a day, depending on the availability of the medication.
When to Request: There is no restriction on when to request a re-route for a non-controlled medication. If the original pharmacy is unable to dispense the medication due to stock or other factors, you are welcome to initiate the request as soon as you notice a delay or issue preventing your access.
How to Request: Reach out to the pharmacy where you want your prescription moved to, provide them with the necessary details, and your current pharmacy's information. They will manage the rest.
Controlled Substance Prescriptions
The Process: Changing pharmacies after a controlled substance prescription was written takes more time due to regulations and complexities. The initial prescription order must be cancelled with the pharmacy, reviewed by the clinical team, verified in the controlled medication database, and re-prescribed to the updated pharmacy. After this, the prescription will be added to a queue at the pharmacy. The pharmacist will need to complete additional checks and verifications before filling the medication and notifying you that it is ready for pick-up. This entire process can take several days. Re-routing is only possible within the state where both you and your provider are located.
When to Request: Given the complexities of re-routing controlled substances, the risk it poses on access, and the potential resolution of many delays and stock issues, policy requires that patients must wait 5 days before requesting a re-route. If delays persist beyond this, rerouting may be considered. Prescriptions may not be re-routed once dispensed.
How to Request: If you have experienced a delay of more than 5 days, you can request a re-route of the medication. To submit a request for review, send a message via the chat feature in the app or web portal. Follow the prompts to provide the care team with information about your request. Once received, it will be reviewed as soon as possible.