With the March 27^th mandatory e-Prescribing deadline in New York State looming, the New York Commissioner of Health has waived the following exceptional circumstances from the requirements of electronic prescribing¹:

1. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance, containing two (2) or more products, which is compounded by a pharmacist;
2. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance to be compounded for the direct administration to a patient by parenteral, intravenous, intramuscular, subcutaneous or intraspinal infusion;
3. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance that contains long or complicated directions;
4. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance that requires a prescription to contain certain elements required by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that are not able to be accomplished with electronic prescribing;
5. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance under approved protocols under expedited partner therapy, collaborative drug management or in response to a public health emergency that would allow a non-patient specific prescription;
6. any practitioner prescribing an opioid antagonist that would allow a non-patient specific prescription;
7. any practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance under a research protocol;
8. a practitioner prescribing a controlled or non-controlled substance either through an Official New York State Prescription form or an oral prescription communicated to a pharmacist serving as a vendor of pharmaceutical services, by an agent who is a health care practitioner, for patients in nursing homes and residential health care facilities as defined in section twenty-eight hundred one of the public health law.
9. a pharmacist dispensing controlled and non-controlled substance compounded prescriptions, prescriptions containing long or complicated directions, and prescriptions containing certain elements required by the FDA or any other governmental agency that are not able to be accomplished with electronic prescribing;
10. a pharmacist dispensing prescriptions issued under a research protocol, or under approved protocols for expedited partner therapy, or for collaborative drug management;
11. a pharmacist dispensing non-patient specific prescriptions, including opioid antagonists, or prescriptions issued in response to a public health emergency issued; and
12. a pharmacist serving as a vendor of pharmaceutical services dispensing a controlled or non-controlled substance through an Official New York State Prescription form or an oral prescription communicated by an agent who is a health care practitioner, for patients in nursing homes and residential health care facilities as defined in section twenty-eight hundred one of the public health law.

Prescribers who issue prescriptions in any of these circumstances may use the Official New York State Prescription Form or issue the prescription orally. The waiver is effective until March 26, 2017. Before that time, the Commissioner of Health will reevaluate whether the e-Prescribing software available has adequate functionality for these exceptional circumstances. 

1. New York State Department of Health, Letter from the NYS Commissioner of Health to practictioners and pharmacists regarding a blanket waiver for additional exceptional circumstances related to electronic prescribing - March 16, 2016

http://www.health.ny.gov/professionals/narcotic/electronic_prescribing/docs/2016-03-16_blanket_waiver_letter.pdf