Comprehensive pharmacy technician knowledge across medications, federal law, patient safety, and order processing - with a worked explanation on every practice question.
Free sample questions
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lock_openFree sampleFederal Requirementshard
A patient, Marisol Quintero, presents a written prescription for oxycodone immediate-release 5 mg, quantity 60, signed by Dr Aimee Voss. The patient asks the technician to fill only 20 tablets today because she cannot afford the full quantity, and to receive the balance later. What is the technician's BEST action under federal law?
- ADispense the partial quantity of 20 tablets and supply the remaining 40 tablets within 30 days of the prescription date.check_circle Correct
- BDispense the partial quantity of 20 tablets and supply the balance only within 72 hours, after which the remainder is void.
- CRefuse the partial fill because Schedule II prescriptions must be dispensed in full or returned to the patient.
- DDispense 20 tablets now and add five refills so the patient may collect the remaining tablets as needed.
A Schedule II prescription partially filled at the patient's request may be completed within 30 days of the written date, with no refills permitted. Federal rules allow a partial fill of a Schedule II prescription when the patient or prescriber requests it; the pharmacy may supply the remaining amount within 30 days of the issue date, whereas the separate 72-hour limit governs partials due to insufficient stock.
Why A is correct: Correct: federal law permits partial filling of a Schedule II prescription at the patient's request, and the remaining quantity may be supplied within 30 days of the date the prescription was written.
Why B is wrong: Tempting because the 72-hour limit is a genuine Schedule II partial-fill provision, but under current federal law a partial fill requested by the patient must be completed within 30 days of the written date, so the shorter 72-hour deadline is not the operative rule for this patient-requested partial.
Why C is wrong: Tempting because Schedule II carries no refills, but partial filling at the patient's request is expressly permitted, so an outright refusal is not required.
Why D is wrong: Tempting because refills feel like a way to spread out collection, but Schedule II prescriptions may not be refilled at all, so authorising refills is unlawful.
lock_openFree sampleFederal Requirementshard
A prescription for alprazolam 0.5 mg, a Schedule IV medicine, was written on 3 January with an authorisation of five refills. The patient, Devon Hartwell, has used the original fill plus four refills and returns on 10 July seeking the final refill. How should the technician proceed?
- ADispense the final refill, as one authorised refill remains and the order is still within validity.
- BDecline the refill because the prescription has exceeded six months from the date it was written.check_circle Correct
- CDecline the refill because the maximum of five refills has already been exhausted.
- DDispense the refill and transfer the remaining authorisation to another pharmacy on request.
A Schedule III to V prescription expires six months after the written date even when authorised refills remain unused. Federal law caps Schedule III to V prescriptions at five refills within six months of the issue date; once six months elapse the authorisation is void, so any unused refills cannot be dispensed even if the five-refill ceiling was not reached.
Why A is wrong: Tempting because a fifth refill was authorised, but a Schedule III to V prescription expires six months from the written date, and 10 July is past that limit, so the remaining refill can no longer be used.
Why B is correct: Correct: Schedule III to V prescriptions are valid for a maximum of six months from the issue date, so a prescription written on 3 January cannot be refilled on 10 July regardless of remaining refills.
Why C is wrong: Tempting because five refills is the federal ceiling, but the patient had used only four refills, so the refusal must rest on the six-month expiry rather than an exhausted count.
Why D is wrong: Tempting because transfers of Schedule III to V refills are allowed once, but the prescription has lapsed past six months, so neither a fill nor a transfer of remaining refills is permissible.
lock_openFree sampleFederal Requirementshard
A patient, Priya Nandakumar, asks her current pharmacy to transfer the remaining refills of her phenobarbital prescription, a Schedule IV medicine, to a second pharmacy that is not electronically linked by a shared real-time database. The original prescription had three refills authorised, none yet used. How many refills may lawfully be transferred?
- AOnly one refill may be transferred, with the remaining two staying at the original pharmacy.
- BNo refills may be transferred, because Schedule IV prescriptions cannot move between pharmacies.
- CAll three remaining refills may be transferred on a one-time basis to the receiving pharmacy.check_circle Correct
- DAll three refills may be transferred and the receiving pharmacy may then transfer them onward again.
Schedule III to V refills may be transferred between non-linked pharmacies one time only, carrying all remaining authorised refills in that single transfer. Federal regulation allows a one-time transfer of remaining Schedule III to V refills between pharmacies that do not share a real-time database; the whole balance of refills moves in that transaction and cannot be repeatedly relayed.
Why A is wrong: Tempting because the transfer itself is a one-time event, but the one-time limit applies to the act of transferring, not the number of refills moved, so all remaining refills go together.
Why B is wrong: Tempting because Schedule II prescriptions cannot have refills transferred, but Schedule III to V refills are transferable, so a blanket refusal misapplies the Schedule II rule.
Why C is correct: Correct: between pharmacies that do not share a real-time online database, the transfer of Schedule III to V refill information is permitted one time only, and all remaining authorised refills transfer in that single transaction.
Why D is wrong: Tempting because the refills do transfer, but for non-linked pharmacies the transfer is allowed only once, so onward re-transfer of the same refills is not permitted.
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