Laws by State

CDC examined the number of states with prescription drug misuse, abuse, and overdose prevention laws across seven different categories:

Laws Requiring a Physical Examination before Prescribing

Laws Requiring Tamper-Resistant Prescription Forms

Laws Regulating Pain Clinics

Laws Setting Prescription Drug Limits

Laws Prohibiting “Doctor Shopping”/Fraud

Laws Requiring Patient Identification before Dispensing

Laws Providing Immunity from Prosecution/Mitigation at Sentencing for Individuals Seeking Assistance During an Overdose

 

As of August 31, 2010, among the seven types of laws examined, one state had none of these types of laws, three states had one, fifteen had two, nineteen had three, seven had four, five states had five, and one had six.

Click on a state in the map or list below for more information about that state’s laws.

State	# of Laws		State	# of Laws		State	# of Laws
Alabama	3		Kentucky	4		North Dakota	1
Alaska	2		Louisiana	5		Ohio	3
Arizona	2		Maine	4		Oklahoma	4
Arkansas	2		Maryland	3		Oregon	3
California	3		Massachusetts	3		Pennsylvania	2
Colorado	3		Michigan	2		Rhode Island	2
Connecticut	4		Minnesota	3		South Carolina	4
Delaware	4		Mississippi	3		South Dakota	2
Distict of Columbia	3		Missouri	2		Tennessee	3
Florida	6		Montana	0		Texas	5
Georgia	1		Nebraska	1		Utah	2
Hawaii	3		Nevada	5		Vermont	4
Idaho	3		New Hampshire	3		Virginia	2
Illinois	3		New Jersey	2		Washington	2
Indiana	3		New Mexico	3		West Virginia	5
Iowa	3		New York	5		Wisconsin	2
Kansas	2		North Carolina	3		Wyoming	2

Please note that the effectiveness of these seven types of laws has not been evaluated by CDC. CDC's survey of these laws is intended to provide a picture of the legal and regulatory environment surrounding this important public health problem, not to evaluate or judge the effectiveness of each state's approach to this epidemic.