Except as provided in § 203.22 or § 203.23, no person may sell, purchase, or trade, or offer to sell, purchase, or trade any prescription drug that was:

(a) Purchased by a public or private hospital or other health care entity; or

(b) Donated or supplied at a reduced price to a charitable organization.

Section 203.20 does not apply to:

(a) The purchase or other acquisition of a drug for its own use by a hospital or other health care entity that is a member of a group purchasing organization from the group purchasing organization or from other hospitals or health care entities that are members of the organization.

(b) The sale, purchase, or trade of a drug or an offer to sell, purchase, or trade a drug by a charitable organization to a nonprofit affiliate of the organization to the extent otherwise permitted by law.

(c) The sale, purchase, or trade of a drug or an offer to sell, purchase, or trade a drug among hospitals or other health care entities that are under common control.

(d) The sale, purchase, or trade of a drug or an offer to sell, purchase, or trade a drug for emergency medical reasons.

(e) The sale, purchase, or trade of a drug, an offer to sell, purchase, or trade a drug, or the dispensing of a drug under a valid prescription.

(f) The sale, purchase, or trade of a drug or the offer to sell, purchase, or trade a drug by hospitals or health care entities owned or operated by Federal, State, or local governmental units to other hospitals or health care entities owned or operated by Federal, State, or local governmental units.

(g) The sale, purchase, or trade of, or the offer to sell, purchase, or trade blood or blood components intended for transfusion.

(h) The sale, purchase, or trade of, or the offer to sell, purchase, or trade, by a registered blood establishment that qualifies as a health care entity any:

(1) Drug indicated for a bleeding or clotting disorder, or anemia;

(2) Blood collection container approved under section 505 of the act; or

(3) Drug that is a blood derivative (or a recombinant or synthetic form of a blood derivative); as long as all of the health care services that the establishment provides are related to its activities as a registered blood establishment or the health care services consist of collecting, processing, storing, or administering human hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells or performing diagnostic testing of specimens provided that these specimens are tested together with specimens undergoing routine donor testing. Blood establishments relying on the exclusion in this paragraph must satisfy all other requirements of the act and this part applicable to a wholesale distributor or retail pharmacy.

(i) The sale, purchase, or trade of, or the offer to sell, purchase, or trade, by a comprehensive hemophilia diagnostic treatment center that is receiving a grant under section 501(a)(2) of the Social Security Act and that qualifies as a health care entity, any drug indicated for a bleeding or clotting disorder, or anemia, or any drug that is a blood derivative (or a recombinant or synthetic form of a blood derivative). Comprehensive hemophilia diagnostic treatment centers relying on the exclusion in this paragraph must satisfy all other requirements of the act and this part applicable to a wholesale distributor or retail pharmacy.

[64 FR 67756, Dec. 3, 1999, as amended at 73 FR 59500, Oct. 9, 2008]

The return of a prescription drug purchased by a hospital or health care entity or acquired at a reduced price by or donated to a charitable institution is exempt from the prohibitions in § 203.20, provided that:

(a) The hospital, health care entity, or charitable institution documents the return by filling out a credit memo specifying:

(1) The name and address of the hospital, health care entity, or charitable institution;

(2) The name and address of the manufacturer or wholesale distributor from which it was acquired;

(3) The product name and lot or control number;

(4) The quantity returned; and

(5) The date of the return.

(b) The hospital, health care entity, or charitable institution forwards a copy of each credit memo to the manufacturer and retains a copy of each credit memo for its records;

(c) Any drugs returned to a manufacturer or wholesale distributor are kept under proper conditions for storage, handling, and shipping, and written documentation showing that proper conditions were maintained is provided to the manufacturer or wholesale distributor to which the drugs are returned.