Relevant exemptions to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
Between 2018 and 2020, Health Canada has issued a number of exemptions to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. These exemptions:
- cover a range of topics related to controlled substances
- are compiled to assist health care providers and the public understand how these exemptions may impact them
Some of the exemptions have been issued to maintain Canadians' access to controlled substances during the COVID-19 pandemic:
- if they need to self-isolate
- while they adhere to physical distancing guidance
| Exemption | Document | Description | Date Issued / amended |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacists – modifying controlled substance prescriptions - Prescription management by pharmacists with controlled substances under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and its regulations | Policy | Explains what prescribing activities pharmacist can perform with controlled substances, including changing formulations and dispensing prescriptions in subdivided amounts | Issued on March 19, 2020 |
| COVID-19 - Frequently asked questions: Subsection 56(1) class exemption for patients, practitioners and pharmacists prescribing and providing controlled substances in Canada during the coronavirus pandemic | Frequently Asked Questions | Related to the short-term exemption during the COVID-19 pandemic | Issued on March 19, 2020 |
| COVID-19 - Subsection 56(1) class exemption for patients, practitioners and pharmacists prescribing and providing controlled substances in Canada during the coronavirus pandemic | Exemption | Permits pharmacists to extend, renew, and transfer prescriptions; Permits practitioners to verbally prescribe prescriptions with controlled substances; and Allows an individual to deliver controlled substances to patients (at their homes or an alternate location). | Effective date March 19, 2020 |
| Pharmacy Return Programs - Section 56(1) Class Exemption for Pharmacists, Practitioners, Persons in Charge of a Hospital and Licensed Dealers for the Provision and Destruction of Unserviceable Stock and Post-consumer Returns | Exemption | Allows the return of patient medication to the pharmacy for destruction | Effective date February 23, 2018 |
| Nurses exemption - Supplementary information: Subsection 56(1) exemptions | Supplemental information | Information to help explain the exemptions | Issued January 9, 2019 |
| Nurses exemption - Subsection 56(1) Class Exemption for Nurses providing Health Care at a Community Health Facility | Exemption to nurses | Authorizes nurses who provide health care services at a community health facility to sell, provide or administer controlled substances. | Amended January 9, 2019 |
| Nurses exemption - Subsection 56(1) Class Exemption for the Person in Charge of a Hospital and/or a Pharmacist who Supplies Controlled Substances to a Community Health Facility | Exemption to supply community health facilities | Authorizes Persons in Charge of a hospital and pharmacists to supply controlled substances to a community health facility | Amended January 9, 2019 |
| Transportation of controlled substances in Canada | Policy | Describes which professionals can transport controlled substances, including prescriptions to patients under the current federal laws of regulations | Issued September 5, 2018 |
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