Does a patient have to pick up an opioid prescription within 14 days of it being written?

• A. Yes, the patient must pick up within 14 days.
• B. No, only filled, but can pick up beyond the 14 days.
• C. Yes, and it cannot be picked up after 14 days.
• D. No, it must be picked up within 7 days.

Answer: (B)

The key idea here is that the 14-day window is about dispensing the prescription, not about when you must pick it up. For opioid prescriptions, the pharmacy typically has up to 14 days from the date written to fill (dispense) the medication. Once the prescription has been filled, the patient can pick it up according to the pharmacy’s usual hold period, which may be after the 14-day window. So the statement that you don’t have to pick up within 14 days, as long as the prescription is filled, is correct. If the prescription isn’t filled within 14 days, it generally becomes invalid and cannot be dispensed.