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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>59669</law_id><section_number>54.1-3401</section_number><catch_line>Definitions</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><referred_to_by><reference>15.2-1724</reference><reference>15.2-2291</reference><reference>15.2-907</reference><reference>18.2-247</reference><reference>18.2-258</reference><reference>18.2-264</reference><reference>18.2-265.19</reference><reference>22.1-212.2:4</reference><reference>22.1-274.01:1</reference><reference>22.1-274.2</reference><reference>23.1-408.1</reference><reference>3.2-5145.1</reference><reference>32.1-126.02</reference><reference>32.1-42.1</reference><reference>38.2-3407.15:6</reference><reference>54.1-2952.1</reference><reference>54.1-2957.01</reference><reference>54.1-2957.9</reference><reference>54.1-3301</reference><reference>54.1-3303.1</reference><reference>54.1-3434.02</reference><reference>54.1-3435</reference><reference>54.1-3435.2</reference><reference>54.1-3435.4</reference><reference>54.1-3443</reference><reference>59.1-365</reference></referred_to_by><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="54.1">Professions and Occupations</unit><unit label="subtitle" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="III">Professions and Occupations Regulated by Boards Within the Department of Health Professions</unit><unit label="chapter" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="34">Drug Control Act</unit><unit label="article" level="4" order_by="1" identifier="1">General Provisions</unit></structure><text>
						<section><p>As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning:
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Administer</span>&#x201D; means the direct application of a controlled substance, whether by injection, inhalation, ingestion, or any other means, to the body of a patient or research subject by (i) a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> or by his authorized <span class="dictionary">agent</span> and under his direction or (ii) the patient or research subject at the direction and in the presence of the <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Advertisement</span>&#x201D; means all representations disseminated in any manner or by any means, other than by <span class="dictionary">labeling</span>, for the purpose of inducing, or which are likely to induce, directly or indirectly, the purchase of drugs or <span class="dictionary">devices</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Agent</span>&#x201D; means an authorized <span class="dictionary">person</span> who acts on behalf of or at the direction of a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, distributor, or <span class="dictionary">dispenser</span>. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Agent</span>&#x201D; does not include a common or <span class="dictionary">contract</span> carrier, public warehouseman, or employee of the carrier or warehouseman.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Anabolic steroid</span>&#x201D; means any drug or hormonal substance, chemically and pharmacologically related to testosterone, other than estrogens, progestins, corticosteroids, and dehydroepiandrosterone.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Animal</span>&#x201D; means any nonhuman animate being endowed with the power of voluntary action.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Automated drug dispensing system</span>&#x201D; means a mechanical or electronic system that performs operations or activities, other than <span class="dictionary">compounding</span> or administration, relating to pharmacy services, including the storage, dispensing, or distribution of drugs and the collection, control, and maintenance of all transaction information, to provide security and accountability for such drugs.
		&#x201C;Biological product&#x201D; means a virus, therapeutic serum, toxin, antitoxin, vaccine, blood, blood component or derivative, allergenic product, protein other than a chemically synthesized polypeptide, or analogous product, or arsphenamine or any derivative of arsphenamine or any other trivalent organic arsenic compound, applicable to the prevention, treatment, or cure of a disease or condition of human beings.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Biosimilar</span>&#x201D; means a biological product that is highly similar to a specific <span class="dictionary">reference biological product</span>, notwithstanding <span class="dictionary">minor</span> differences in clinically inactive compounds, such that there are no clinically meaningful differences between the <span class="dictionary">reference biological product</span> and the biological product that has been licensed as a <span class="dictionary">biosimilar</span> pursuant to 42 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;262(k) in terms of safety, purity, and potency of the product.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Board</span>&#x201D; means the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> of Pharmacy.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Bulk drug substance</span>&#x201D; means any substance that is represented for use, and that, when used in the <span class="dictionary">compounding</span>, manufacturing, processing, or packaging of a drug, becomes an active ingredient or a finished dosage form of the drug; however, &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">bulk drug substance</span>&#x201D; does not include intermediates that are used in the synthesis of such substances.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Change of ownership</span>&#x201D; of an existing entity permitted, registered, or licensed by the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> means (i) the <span class="dictionary">sale</span> or transfer of all or substantially all of the <span class="dictionary">assets</span> of the entity or of any corporation that owns or controls the entity; (ii) the creation of a partnership by a sole proprietor, the dissolution of a partnership, or a change in partnership composition; (iii) the acquisition or disposal of 50 percent or more of the outstanding shares of voting stock of a corporation owning the entity or of the parent corporation of a wholly owned subsidiary owning the entity, except that this shall not apply to any corporation the voting stock of which is actively traded on any securities exchange or in any over-the-counter market; (iv) the merger of a corporation owning the entity or of the parent corporation of a wholly owned subsidiary owning the entity with another business or corporation; or (v) the expiration or forfeiture of a corporation&#x2019;s charter.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Co-licensed partner</span>&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">person</span> who, with at least one other <span class="dictionary">person</span>, has the right to engage in the manufacturing or marketing of a <span class="dictionary">prescription drug</span>, consistent with state and federal <span class="dictionary">law</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Compounding</span>&#x201D; means the combining of two or more ingredients to fabricate such ingredients into a single preparation and includes the mixing, assembling, packaging, or <span class="dictionary">labeling</span> of a drug or <span class="dictionary">device</span> (i) by a pharmacist, or within a permitted pharmacy, pursuant to a valid prescription issued for a medicinal or therapeutic purpose in the context of a bona fide <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>-patient-pharmacist relationship, or in expectation of receiving a valid prescription based on observed historical patterns of prescribing and dispensing; (ii) by a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry, dentistry, or veterinary medicine as an incident to his administering or dispensing, if authorized to <span class="dictionary">dispense</span>, a controlled substance in the course of his professional practice; or (iii) for the purpose of, or as incident to, research, teaching, or chemical analysis and not for <span class="dictionary">sale</span> or for dispensing. The mixing, diluting, or reconstituting of a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>&#x2019;s product drugs for the purpose of administration to a patient, when performed by a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> of medicine or osteopathy licensed under Chapter 29 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/54.1-2900/">54.1-2900</a> et seq.), a <span class="dictionary">person</span> supervised by such <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> pursuant to subdivision A 6 or 19 of &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Exceptions and exemptions generally" href="/54.1-2901/">54.1-2901</a>, or a <span class="dictionary">person</span> supervised by such <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> or a licensed advanced practice registered nurse or physician assistant pursuant to subdivision A 4 of &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Exceptions and exemptions generally" href="/54.1-2901/">54.1-2901</a> shall not be considered <span class="dictionary">compounding</span>.
		&#x201C;Controlled substance&#x201D; means a drug, substance, or <span class="dictionary">immediate precursor</span> in <span class="dictionary">Schedules</span> I through VI of this chapter. &#x201C;Controlled substance&#x201D; does not include distilled spirits, wine, malt beverages, or tobacco as those terms are defined or used in Title 3.2 or Title 4.1. The term &#x201C;controlled substance&#x201D; includes a <span class="dictionary">controlled substance analog</span> that has been placed into Schedule I or II by the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> pursuant to the regulatory authority in subsection D of &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Board to administer article" href="/54.1-3443/">54.1-3443</a>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Controlled substance analog</span>&#x201D; means a substance the chemical structure of which is substantially similar to the chemical structure of a controlled substance in Schedule I or II and either (i) which has a stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system that is substantially similar to or greater than the stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system of a controlled substance in Schedule I or II or (ii) with respect to a particular <span class="dictionary">person</span>, which such <span class="dictionary">person</span> represents or intends to have a stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system that is substantially similar to or greater than the stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system of a controlled substance in Schedule I or II. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Controlled substance analog</span>&#x201D; does not include (a) any substance for which there is an approved <span class="dictionary">new drug</span> application as defined under &#xA7;&#xA0;505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;355) or that is generally recognized as safe and effective pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA7;&#xA0;501, 502, and 503 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA7;&#xA0;351, 352, and 353) and 21 C.F.R. Part 330; (b) with respect to a particular <span class="dictionary">person</span>, any substance for which an exemption is in effect for investigational use for that <span class="dictionary">person</span> under &#xA7;&#xA0;505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to the extent that the conduct with respect to that substance is pursuant to such exemption; or (c) any substance to the extent not intended for human consumption before such an exemption takes effect with respect to that substance.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">DEA</span>&#x201D; means the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Department of Justice, or its successor agency.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Deliver</span>&#x201D; or &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">delivery</span>&#x201D; means the actual, constructive, or attempted transfer of any item regulated by this chapter, whether or not there exists an agency relationship, including <span class="dictionary">delivery</span> of a Schedule VI prescription <span class="dictionary">device</span> to an ultimate user or consumer on behalf of a <span class="dictionary">medical equipment supplier</span> by a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, nonresident <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, <span class="dictionary">wholesale distributor</span>, nonresident <span class="dictionary">wholesale distributor</span>, <span class="dictionary">warehouser</span>, nonresident <span class="dictionary">warehouser</span>, <span class="dictionary">third-<span class="dictionary">party</span> logistics provider</span>, or nonresident <span class="dictionary">third-<span class="dictionary">party</span> logistics provider</span> at the direction of a <span class="dictionary">medical equipment supplier</span> in accordance with &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Delivery of medical devices on behalf of a medical equipment supplier" href="/54.1-3415.1/">54.1-3415.1</a>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Device</span>&#x201D; means instruments, apparatus, and contrivances, including their components, parts, and accessories, intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in man or <span class="dictionary">animals</span> or to affect the structure or any function of the body of man or <span class="dictionary">animals</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Dialysis care technician</span>&#x201D; or &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">dialysis patient care technician</span>&#x201D; means an individual who is certified by an organization approved by the Department of Health Professions pursuant to Chapter 27.01 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Scope of chapter" href="/54.1-2729.1/">54.1-2729.1</a> et seq.) and who, under the supervision of a licensed physician, an advanced practice registered nurse, a physician assistant, or a registered nurse, assists in the care of patients undergoing renal dialysis treatments in a Medicare-certified renal dialysis facility.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Dialysis solution</span>&#x201D; means either the commercially available, unopened, sterile solutions whose purpose is to be instilled into the peritoneal cavity during the medical procedure known as peritoneal dialysis, or commercially available solutions whose purpose is to be used in the performance of hemodialysis not to include any solutions administered to the patient intravenously.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Dispense</span>&#x201D; means to <span class="dictionary">deliver</span> a drug to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>, including the prescribing and administering, packaging, <span class="dictionary">labeling</span>, or <span class="dictionary">compounding</span> necessary to prepare the substance for that <span class="dictionary">delivery</span>. However, &#x201C;dispensing&#x201D; does not include the transportation of drugs mixed, diluted, or reconstituted in accordance with this chapter to other sites operated by such <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> or that <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>&#x2019;s medical practice for the purpose of administration of such drugs to patients of the <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> or that <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>&#x2019;s medical practice at such other sites. For <span class="dictionary">practitioners</span> of medicine or osteopathy, &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">dispense</span>&#x201D; includes only the provision of drugs by a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> to patients to take with them away from the <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>&#x2019;s place of practice.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Dispenser</span>&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> who <span class="dictionary">dispenses</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Distribute</span>&#x201D; means to <span class="dictionary">deliver</span> other than by administering or dispensing a controlled substance.
		&#x201C;Distributor&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">person</span> who <span class="dictionary">distributes</span>.
		&#x201C;Drug&#x201D; means (i) articles or substances recognized in the official United States Pharmacopoeia National Formulary or official Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States, or any supplement to any of them; (ii) articles or substances intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in man or <span class="dictionary">animals</span>; (iii) articles or substances, other than food, intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of man or <span class="dictionary">animals</span>; (iv) articles or substances intended for use as a component of any article specified in clause (i), (ii), or (iii); or (v) a biological product. &#x201C;Drug&#x201D; does not include <span class="dictionary">devices</span> or their components, parts, or accessories.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Drug product</span>&#x201D; means a specific drug in dosage form from a known source of <span class="dictionary">manufacture</span>, whether by brand or therapeutically equivalent <span class="dictionary">drug product</span> name.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Electronic prescription</span>&#x201D; means a written prescription that is generated on an electronic application and is transmitted to a pharmacy as an electronic data file; <span class="dictionary">Schedules</span> II through V <span class="dictionary">prescriptions</span> shall be transmitted in accordance with 21 C.F.R. Part 1300.
		&#x201C;Facsimile (FAX) prescription&#x201D; means a written prescription or order that is transmitted by an electronic <span class="dictionary">device</span> over telephone lines that sends the exact image to the receiving pharmacy in hard copy form.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">FDA</span>&#x201D; means the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Immediate precursor</span>&#x201D; means a substance which the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> of Pharmacy has found to be and by regulation designates as being the principal compound commonly used or produced primarily for use, and which is an immediate chemical intermediary used or likely to be used in the <span class="dictionary">manufacture</span> of a controlled substance, the control of which is necessary to prevent, curtail, or limit <span class="dictionary">manufacture</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Interchangeable</span>&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">biosimilar</span> that meets safety standards for determining interchangeability pursuant to 42 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;262(k)(4).
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Label</span>&#x201D; means a display of written, printed, or graphic matter upon the immediate container of any article. A requirement made by or under authority of this chapter that any word, statement, or other information appear on the <span class="dictionary">label</span> shall not be considered to be complied with unless such word, statement, or other information also appears on the outside container or wrapper, if any, of the retail package of such article or is easily legible through the outside container or wrapper.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Labeling</span>&#x201D; means all <span class="dictionary">labels</span> and other written, printed, or graphic matter on an article or any of its containers or wrappers, or accompanying such article.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Manufacture</span>&#x201D; means the <span class="dictionary">production</span>, preparation, propagation, conversion, or processing of any item regulated by this chapter, either directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of natural origin, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis, and includes any packaging or repackaging of the substance or <span class="dictionary">labeling</span> or relabeling of its container. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Manufacture</span>&#x201D; does not include <span class="dictionary">compounding</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Manufacturer</span>&#x201D; means every <span class="dictionary">person</span> who <span class="dictionary">manufactures</span>, a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>&#x2019;s <span class="dictionary">co-licensed partner</span>, or a repackager.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Marijuana</span>&#x201D; means any part of a plant of the genus Cannabis whether growing or not, its seeds, or its resin; and every compound, <span class="dictionary">manufacture</span>, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of such plant, its seeds, its resin, or any extract containing one or more cannabinoids. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Marijuana</span>&#x201D; does not include (i) the mature stalks of such plant, fiber produced from such stalk, or oil or cake made from the seeds of such plant, unless such stalks, fiber, oil, or cake is combined with other parts of plants of the genus Cannabis; (ii) industrial hemp, as defined in &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/3.2-4112/">3.2-4112</a>, that is possessed by a <span class="dictionary">person</span> registered pursuant to subsection A of &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Issuance of registrations; exemption" href="/3.2-4115/">3.2-4115</a> or his <span class="dictionary">agent</span>; (iii) industrial hemp, as defined in &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/3.2-4112/">3.2-4112</a>, that is possessed by a <span class="dictionary">person</span> who holds a hemp producer license issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture pursuant to 7 C.F.R. Part 990; (iv) a hemp product, as defined in &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/3.2-4112/">3.2-4112</a>; (v) an industrial hemp extract, as defined in &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/3.2-5145.1/">3.2-5145.1</a>; or (vi) any substance containing a tetrahydrocannabinol <span class="dictionary">isomer</span>, ester, ether, salt, or salts of such <span class="dictionary">isomer</span>, ester, or ether that has been placed by the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> of Pharmacy into one of the <span class="dictionary">schedules</span> set forth in the Drug Control Act (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Citation" href="/54.1-3400/">54.1-3400</a> et seq.) pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Board to administer article" href="/54.1-3443/">54.1-3443</a>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Medical equipment supplier</span>&#x201D; means any <span class="dictionary">person</span>, as defined in &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Person" href="/1-230/">1-230</a>, engaged in the <span class="dictionary">delivery</span> to the ultimate consumer, pursuant to the lawful order of a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span>, of hypodermic syringes and needles, medicinal oxygen, Schedule VI controlled <span class="dictionary">devices</span>, those Schedule VI <span class="dictionary">controlled substances</span> with no medicinal properties that are used for the operation and cleaning of medical equipment, solutions for peritoneal dialysis, and sterile water or saline for irrigation.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Narcotic drug</span>&#x201D; means any of the following, whether produced directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of vegetable origin, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis: (i) opium, <span class="dictionary">opiates</span>, and any salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of opium or <span class="dictionary">opiates</span>; (ii) any salt, compound, <span class="dictionary">isomer</span>, derivative, or preparation thereof which is chemically equivalent or identical with any of the substances referred to in clause (i), but not including the isoquinoline alkaloids of opium; (iii) <span class="dictionary">opium poppy</span> and <span class="dictionary">poppy straw</span>; or (iv) coca leaves and any salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of coca leaves, and any salt, compound, <span class="dictionary">isomer</span>, derivative, or preparation thereof which is chemically equivalent or identical with any of these substances, but not including decocainized coca leaves or extraction of coca leaves which do not contain cocaine or ecgonine.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">New drug</span>&#x201D; means (i) any drug, except a new <span class="dictionary">animal</span> drug or an <span class="dictionary">animal</span> feed bearing or containing a new <span class="dictionary">animal</span> drug, the composition of which is such that such drug is not generally recognized, among experts qualified by scientific training and experience to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of drugs, as safe and effective for use under the conditions prescribed, recommended, or suggested in the <span class="dictionary">labeling</span>, except that such a drug not so recognized shall not be deemed to be a &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">new drug</span>&#x201D; if at any time prior to the enactment of this chapter it was subject to the Food and Drugs Act of June 30, 1906, as amended, and if at such time its <span class="dictionary">labeling</span> contained the same representations concerning the conditions of its use, or (ii) any drug, except a new <span class="dictionary">animal</span> drug or an <span class="dictionary">animal</span> feed bearing or containing a new <span class="dictionary">animal</span> drug, the composition of which is such that such drug, as a result of investigations to determine its safety and effectiveness for use under such conditions, has become so recognized, but which has not, otherwise than in such investigations, been used to a <span class="dictionary">material</span> extent or for a <span class="dictionary">material</span> time under such conditions.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Nuclear medicine technologist</span>&#x201D; means an individual who holds a current certification with the American Registry of Radiological Technologists or the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification <span class="dictionary">Board</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Official compendium</span>&#x201D; means the official United States Pharmacopoeia National Formulary, official Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States, or any supplement to any of them.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Official written order</span>&#x201D; means an order written on a form provided for that purpose by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, under any <span class="dictionary">laws</span> of the United States making provision therefor, if such order forms are authorized and required by federal <span class="dictionary">law</span>, and if no such order form is provided then on an official form provided for that purpose by the <span class="dictionary">Board</span> of Pharmacy.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Opiate</span>&#x201D; means any substance having an addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability similar to morphine or being capable of conversion into a drug having such addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Opiate</span>&#x201D; does not include, unless specifically designated as controlled under Article 4 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Permit to manufacture drugs" href="/54.1-3437/">54.1-3437</a> et seq.), the dextrorotatory <span class="dictionary">isomer</span> of 3-methoxy-n-methylmorphinan and its salts (dextromethorphan). &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Opiate</span>&#x201D; does include its racemic and levorotatory forms.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Opium poppy</span>&#x201D; means the plant of the species Papaver somniferum L., except the seeds thereof.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Original package</span>&#x201D; means the unbroken container or wrapping in which any drug or medicine is enclosed together with <span class="dictionary">label</span> and <span class="dictionary">labeling</span>, put up by or for the <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, wholesaler, or distributor for use in the <span class="dictionary">delivery</span> or display of such article.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Outsourcing facility</span>&#x201D; means a facility that is engaged in the <span class="dictionary">compounding</span> of sterile drugs and is currently registered as an <span class="dictionary">outsourcing facility</span> with the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and that complies with all applicable requirements of federal and state <span class="dictionary">law</span>, including the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;301 et seq.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Person</span>&#x201D; means both the plural and singular, as the case demands, and includes an individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental agency, trust, or other institution or entity.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Pharmacist-in-charge</span>&#x201D; means the <span class="dictionary">person</span> who, being licensed as a pharmacist, signs the application for a pharmacy permit and assumes full legal responsibility for the operation of the relevant pharmacy in a manner complying with the <span class="dictionary">laws</span> and regulations for the practice of pharmacy and the <span class="dictionary">sale</span> and dispensing of <span class="dictionary">controlled substances</span>; the &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">pharmacist-in-charge</span>&#x201D; shall personally supervise the pharmacy and the pharmacy&#x2019;s personnel as required by &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Supervision by pharmacist" href="/54.1-3432/">54.1-3432</a>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Poppy straw</span>&#x201D; means all parts, except the seeds, of the <span class="dictionary">opium poppy</span>, after mowing.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Practitioner</span>&#x201D; means a physician, dentist, licensed advanced practice registered nurse pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Prescription of certain controlled substances and devices by licensed advanced practice registered nurses" href="/54.1-2957.01/">54.1-2957.01</a>, licensed physician assistant pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Prescription of certain controlled substances and devices by licensed physician assistants" href="/54.1-2952.1/">54.1-2952.1</a>, pharmacist pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/54.1-3300/">54.1-3300</a>, TPA-certified optometrist pursuant to Article 5 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="TPA certification; certification for treatment of diseases or abnormal conditions with therapeutic pharmaceutical agents (TPAs)" href="/54.1-3222/">54.1-3222</a> et seq.) of Chapter 32, veterinarian, scientific investigator, or other <span class="dictionary">person</span> licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to <span class="dictionary">distribute</span>, <span class="dictionary">dispense</span>, prescribe and <span class="dictionary">administer</span>, or conduct research with respect to a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in the Commonwealth.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Prescriber</span>&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> who is authorized pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Prescriptions to be issued and drugs to be dispensed for medical or therapeutic purposes only" href="/54.1-3303/">54.1-3303</a> and <a class="law" title="Professional use by practitioners" href="/54.1-3408/">54.1-3408</a> to <span class="dictionary">issue</span> a prescription.
		&#x201C;Prescription&#x201D; means an order for drugs or medical supplies, written or signed or transmitted by word of mouth, telephone, telegraph, or other means of communication to a pharmacist by a duly licensed physician, dentist, veterinarian, or other <span class="dictionary">practitioner</span> authorized by <span class="dictionary">law</span> to prescribe and <span class="dictionary">administer</span> such drugs or medical supplies.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Prescription drug</span>&#x201D; means any drug required by federal <span class="dictionary">law</span> or regulation to be dispensed only pursuant to a prescription, including finished dosage forms and active ingredients subject to &#xA7;&#xA0;503(b) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;353(b)).
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Production</span>&#x201D; or &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">produce</span>&#x201D; includes the <span class="dictionary">manufacture</span>, planting, cultivation, growing, or harvesting of a controlled substance or <span class="dictionary">marijuana</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Proprietary medicine</span>&#x201D; means a completely compounded nonprescription drug in its unbroken, <span class="dictionary">original package</span> which does not contain any controlled substance or <span class="dictionary">marijuana</span> as defined in this chapter and is not in itself poisonous, and which is sold, offered, promoted, or advertised directly to the general public by or under the authority of the <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span> or primary distributor, under a trademark, trade name, or other trade symbol privately owned, and the <span class="dictionary">labeling</span> of which conforms to the requirements of this chapter and applicable federal <span class="dictionary">law</span>. However, &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">proprietary medicine</span>&#x201D; does not include a drug that is only advertised or promoted professionally to licensed <span class="dictionary">practitioners</span>, a narcotic or drug containing a narcotic, a drug that may be dispensed only upon prescription or the <span class="dictionary">label</span> of which bears substantially the statement &#x201C;Warning may be habit-forming,&#x201D; or a drug intended for injection.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Radiopharmaceutical</span>&#x201D; means any drug that exhibits spontaneous disintegration of unstable nuclei with the emission of nuclear particles or photons and includes any non-radioactive reagent kit or radionuclide generator that is intended to be used in the preparation of any such substance, but does not include drugs such as carbon-containing compounds or potassium-containing salts that include trace quantities of naturally occurring radionuclides. &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Radiopharmaceutical</span>&#x201D; also includes any biological product that is labeled with a radionuclide or intended solely to be labeled with a radionuclide.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Reference biological product</span>&#x201D; means the single biological product licensed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;262(a) against which a biological product is evaluated in an application submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for licensure of <span class="dictionary">biological products</span> as <span class="dictionary">biosimilar</span> or <span class="dictionary">interchangeable</span> pursuant to 42 U.S.C. &#xA7;&#xA0;262(k).
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Remote dispensing system</span>&#x201D; means a profile-driven <span class="dictionary">automated drug dispensing system</span> that performs operations or activities relative to the storage, packaging, <span class="dictionary">labeling</span>, or dispensing of medications employing bidirectional audio-visual technology to facilitate pharmacist communication with a patient, authorized <span class="dictionary">agent</span> of the patient, or <span class="dictionary">person</span> licensed to <span class="dictionary">administer</span> drugs, and collects, controls, and maintains all information online. Drugs intended to be administered by the patient or a <span class="dictionary">person</span> not licensed to <span class="dictionary">administer</span> drugs must fully comply with the <span class="dictionary">labeling</span> requirements in &#xA7;&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="When pharmacist may sell and dispense drugs" href="/54.1-3410/">54.1-3410</a> and <a class="law" title="Exemption of drugs dispensed by filling or refilling prescription" href="/54.1-3463/">54.1-3463</a> and <span class="dictionary">Board</span> regulations. Directions for use may only be abbreviated when drugs are administered exclusively by <span class="dictionary">persons</span> licensed to <span class="dictionary">administer</span> drugs.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Sale</span>&#x201D; includes barter, exchange, or gift, or offer therefor, and each such transaction made by any <span class="dictionary">person</span>, whether as an individual, proprietor, <span class="dictionary">agent</span>, servant, or employee.
		&#x201C;Tetrahydrocannabinol&#x201D; means any naturally occurring or synthetic tetrahydrocannabinol, including its salts, <span class="dictionary">isomers</span>, and salts of <span class="dictionary">isomers</span> whenever the existence of such salts, <span class="dictionary">isomers</span>, and salts of <span class="dictionary">isomers</span> is possible within the specific chemical designation and any preparation, mixture, or substance containing, or mixed or infused with, any detectable amount of tetrahydrocannabinol. For the purposes of this definition, &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">isomer</span>&#x201D; means the optical, position, and geometric <span class="dictionary">isomers</span>.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Therapeutically equivalent drug products</span>&#x201D; means drug products that contain the same active ingredients and are identical in strength or concentration, dosage form, and route of administration and that are classified as being therapeutically equivalent by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration pursuant to the definition of &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">therapeutically equivalent drug products</span>&#x201D; set forth in the most recent edition of the Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations, otherwise known as the &#x201C;Orange Book.&#x201D;
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Third-<span class="dictionary">party</span> logistics provider</span>&#x201D; means a <span class="dictionary">person</span> that provides or coordinates warehousing of or other logistics services for a drug or <span class="dictionary">device</span> in interstate commerce on behalf of a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, <span class="dictionary">wholesale distributor</span>, or <span class="dictionary">dispenser</span> of the drug or <span class="dictionary">device</span> but does not take ownership of the product or have responsibility for directing the <span class="dictionary">sale</span> or <span class="dictionary">disposition</span> of the product.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Total tetrahydrocannabinol</span>&#x201D; means the sum, after the application of any necessary conversion factor, of the percentage by weight of tetrahydrocannabinol and the percentage by weight of tetrahydrocannabinolic acid.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">USP-NF</span>&#x201D; means the current edition of the United States Pharmacopeia-National Formulary.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Warehouser</span>&#x201D; means any <span class="dictionary">person</span>, other than a <span class="dictionary">wholesale distributor</span>, <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, or <span class="dictionary">third-<span class="dictionary">party</span> logistics provider</span>, engaged in the business of (i) selling or otherwise distributing <span class="dictionary">prescription drugs</span> or <span class="dictionary">devices</span> to any <span class="dictionary">person</span> who is not the ultimate user or consumer and (ii) delivering Schedule VI prescription <span class="dictionary">devices</span> to the ultimate user or consumer pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Delivery of medical devices on behalf of a medical equipment supplier" href="/54.1-3415.1/">54.1-3415.1</a>. No <span class="dictionary">person</span> shall be subject to any state or local tax by reason of this definition.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Wholesale distribution</span>&#x201D; means (i) distribution of <span class="dictionary">prescription drugs</span> to <span class="dictionary">persons</span> other than consumers or patients and (ii) <span class="dictionary">delivery</span> of Schedule VI prescription <span class="dictionary">devices</span> to the ultimate user or consumer pursuant to &#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Delivery of medical devices on behalf of a medical equipment supplier" href="/54.1-3415.1/">54.1-3415.1</a>, subject to the exemptions set forth in the federal Drug Supply Chain Security Act.
		&#x201C;<span class="dictionary">Wholesale distributor</span>&#x201D; means any <span class="dictionary">person</span> other than a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>, a <span class="dictionary">manufacturer</span>&#x2019;s <span class="dictionary">co-licensed partner</span>, a <span class="dictionary">third-<span class="dictionary">party</span> logistics provider</span>, or a repackager that engages in <span class="dictionary">wholesale distribution</span>.
		The words &#x201C;drugs&#x201D; and &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">devices</span>&#x201D; as used in Chapter 33 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/54.1-3300/">54.1-3300</a> et seq.) and in this chapter do not include surgical or dental instruments, physical therapy equipment, X-ray apparatus, or glasses or lenses for the eyes.
		The terms &#x201C;pharmacist,&#x201D; &#x201C;pharmacy,&#x201D; and &#x201C;practice of pharmacy&#x201D; as used in this chapter have the same meanings as provided in Chapter 33 (&#xA7;&#xA0;<a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/54.1-3300/">54.1-3300</a> et seq.) unless the context requires a different meaning.</p></section></text><history>Code 1950, &#xA7;&#xA7; 54-399, 54-487; 1952, c. 451; 1958, c. 551, &#xA7; 54-524.2; 1966, c. 193; 1968, c. 582; 1970, c. 650; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 94; 1972, c. 798; 1975, c. 425; 1976, c. 14; 1977, c. 193; 1978, c. 833; 1979, c. 435; 1980, c. 150; 1988, c. 765; 1991, cc. 519, 524; 1992, cc. 737, 793; 1996, cc. 37, 152, 158, 407, 408; 1997, cc. 20, 677, 806; 1998, c. 470; 1999, cc. 661, 750; 2000, cc. 861, 878, 935; 2003, cc. 509, 639, 995; 2005, cc. 475, 839; 2006, c. 346; 2012, c. 213; 2013, cc. 412, 504, 544, 765; 2014, cc. 674, 719; 2015, cc. 158, 180, 300; 2016, cc. 221, 495; 2017, cc. 115, 429; 2018, cc. 241, 242, 689, 690; 2019, cc. 653, 654; 2020, cc. 831, 1285, 1286; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 110; 2023, cc. 183, 744, 794; 2024, cc. 63, 513; 2025, c. 341.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
