Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to lift the requirement for pharmacists to be present when people sign prescriptions for controlled medication to reduce pressure on pharmacists during the covid-19 outbreak..

There is no legal requirement for a pharmacist to be present when a prescription for controlled drugs is signed. However, when a Schedule 2 controlled drug is collected from a pharmacy, the pharmacist is legally required to determine whether the person collecting is a patient, patient’s representative or healthcare professional, and maintain a record of the person supplied. These measures are important to prevent the misuse and diversion of controlled drugs.