S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         3896
                              2009-2010 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 28, 2009
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  MAYERSOHN  --  read once and referred to the
         Committee on Higher Education
       AN ACT to amend the education law and the public health law, in relation
         to requiring certain prescriptions to be typewritten
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.    Subdivision  8 of section 6810 of the education law, as
    2  added by chapter 626 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
    3    8. Every prescription (whether or  not  for  a  controlled  substance)
    4  written  in this state by a person authorized to issue such prescription
    5  and containing the prescriber's signature shall,  in  addition  to  such
    6  signature[,]: (A) be imprinted or stamped legibly and conspicuously with
    7  the  printed name of the prescriber who has signed the prescription. The
    8  imprinted or stamped name of the signing prescriber shall appear  in  an
    9  appropriate  location  on the prescription form and shall not be entered
   10  in or upon any space or line reserved for  the  prescriber's  signature.
   11  The imprinted or stamped name shall not be employed as a substitute for,
   12  or   fulfill   any   legal  requirement  otherwise  mandating  that  the
   13  prescription be signed by the prescriber; AND (B) SHALL BE  TYPEWRITTEN,
   14  ELECTRONICALLY  PRINTED   OR HANDWRITTEN IN INK OR INDELIBLE PENCIL IN A
   15  LEGIBLE MANNER. THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL NOT AFFECT MATTERS REQUIRED BY  LAW
   16  TO BE HANDWRITTEN BY THE PRESCRIBER.
   17    S  2.  The  opening  paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 3332 of the
   18  public health law, as amended by chapter 537 of the  laws  of  1998,  is
   19  amended to read as follows:
   20    Such  prescription  shall  be  prepared  on an official New York state
   21  prescription form, LEGIBLY written with ink, indelible pencil or,  apart
   22  from the practitioner's signature, typewriter or electronic printer AND,
   23  WHERE  HANDWRITTEN,  SHALL  ONLY  BE  WRITTEN  IN  PRINT LETTERS.   SUCH
   24  PRESCRIPTIONS SHALL NOT BE HANDWRITTEN IN SCRIPT LETTERS.  The  original
   25  must contain the following:
   26    S  3.  This  act  shall  take effect on the two hundred seventieth day
   27  after it shall have become a law.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD04398-01-9