Legal Status of EPT in North Carolina

EPT is permissible.

This is a table caption for compliance. Please ignore it.
I. Statutes/regs on health care providers’ authority to prescribe for STDs to a patient’s partner(s) w/out prior evaluation (Explanation)
II. Specific judicial decisions concerning EPT (or like practices) (Explanation)
III. Specific administrative opinions by the Attorney General or medical or pharmacy boards concerning EPT (or like practices) (Explanation)	“It is the position of the North Carolina Medical Board that prescribing drugs for an individual whom the licensee has not met or personally examined may be suitable when that individual is the partner of a patient whom the licensee is treating for gonorrhea or chlamydia.” (November 2009) “It is up to the Pharmacist to determine the legitimacy of each prescription, which arrives in the Pharmacy. One important consideration is the Board’s Rule on prescription orders, 21 N.C. Admin. Code 46.1801(b). . . . The Rule specifically provides that a Pharmacist shall not fill or refill a prescription if the order was produced from a prescriber without a prior prescriber-patient relationship or without a physical examination.”
IV. Laws that incorporate via reference guidelines as acceptable practices (including EPT) (Explanation)	Regulations incorporate: APHA’s CCD Manual (as revised); any guidelines or recommendations published by CDC (as revised) shall supersede those contained in the CCD Manual. 10A N.C. Admin. Code 41A.0201. For gonorrhea and Chlamydia, regulations incorporate recommendations contained in the U.S. Public Health Service STD Treatment Guidelines (as revised). 10A N.C. Admin. Code 41A.0204.
V. Prescription requirements (Explanation)	Prescription label must bear patient name. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-134.1.
VI. Assessment of EPT’s legal status with brief comments (Explanation)	EPT is permissible. The Medical Board expressly supports EPT for the treatment of chlamydia and gonorrhea and deems it an appropriate practice, which is further supported by the incorporation of CDC Treatment Guidelines.
Status as of November 1, 2009

Legend

supports the use of EPT

negatively affects the use of EPT

EPT is permissible

EPT is potentially allowable

EPT is prohibited

This is a table caption for compliance. Ignore it please.
EPT is permissible in 46 states:	EPT is potentially allowable in 4 states:	EPT is prohibited in 0 states:
Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming EPT is permissible in the District of Columbia. EPT is permissible in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.	Alabama Kansas Oklahoma South Dakota EPT is potentially allowable in Puerto Rico and Guam.

Summary Totals

The information presented here is not legal advice, nor is it a comprehensive analysis of all the legal provisions that could implicate the legality of EPT in a given jurisdiction. The data and assessment are intended to be used as a tool to assist state and local health departments as they determine locally appropriate ways to control STDs.

For comments, feedback and updates, please contact CDC-INFO: https://www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/.