Minimum requirements for the storage and handling of prescription drugs and for the establishment and maintenance of prescription drug distribution records.
21 C.F.R. § 205.50
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01The State licensing law shall include the following minimum requirements for the storage and handling of prescription drugs, and for the establishment and maintenance of prescription drug distribution records by wholesale drug distributors and their officers, agents, representatives, and employees:
(a) Facilities. All facilities at which prescription drugs are stored, warehoused, handled, held, offered, marketed, or displayed shall:
(1) Be of suitable size and construction to facilitate cleaning, maintenance, and proper operations;
(2) Have storage areas designed to provide adequate lighting, ventilation, temperature, sanitation, humidity, space, equipment, and security conditions;
(3) Have a quarantine area for storage of prescription drugs that are outdated, damaged, deteriorated, misbranded, or adulterated, or that are in immediate or sealed, secondary containers that have been opened;
(4) Be maintained in a clean and orderly condition; and
(5) Be free from infestation by insects, rodents, birds, or vermin of any kind.
(b) Security. (1) All facilities used for wholesale drug distribution shall be secure from unauthorized entry.
(i) Access from outside the premises shall be kept to a minimum and be well-controlled.
(ii) The outside perimeter of the premises shall be well-lighted.
(iii) Entry into areas where prescription drugs are held shall be limited to authorized personnel.
(2) All facilities shall be equipped with an alarm system to detect entry after hours.
(3) All facilities shall be equipped with a security system that will provide suitable protection against theft and diversion. When appropriate, the security system shall provide protection against theft or diversion that is facilitated or hidden by tampering with computers or electronic records.
(c) Storage. All prescription drugs shall be stored at appropriate temperatures and under appropriate conditions in accordance with requirements, if any, in the labeling of such drugs, or with requirements in the current edition of an official compendium, such as the United States Pharmacopeia/National Formulary (USP/NF).
(1) If no storage requirements are established for a prescription drug, the drug may be held at “controlled” room temperature, as defined in an official compendium, to help ensure that its identity, strength, quality, and purity are not adversely affected.
(2) Appropriate manual, electromechanical, or electronic temperature and humidity recording equipment, devices, and/or logs shall be utilized to document proper storage of prescription drugs.
(3) The recordkeeping requirements in paragraph (f) of this section shall be followed for all stored drugs.
(d) Examination of materials. (1) Upon receipt, each outside shipping container shall be visually examined for identity and to prevent the acceptance of contaminated prescription drugs or prescription drugs that are otherwise unfit for distribution. This examination shall be adequate to reveal container damage that would suggest possible contamination or other damage to the contents.
(2) Each outgoing shipment shall be carefully inspected for identity of the prescription drug products and to ensure that there is no delivery of prescription drugs that have been damaged in storage or held under improper conditions.
(3) The recordkeeping requirements in paragraph (f) of this section shall be followed for all incoming and outgoing prescription drugs.
(e) Returned, damaged, and outdated prescription drugs. (1) Prescription drugs that are outdated, damaged, deteriorated, misbranded, or adulterated shall be quarantined and physically separated from other prescription drugs until they are destroyed or returned to their supplier.
(2) Any prescription drugs whose immediate or sealed outer or sealed secondary containers have been opened or used shall be identified as such, and shall be quarantined and physically separated from other prescription drugs until they are either destroyed or returned to the supplier.
(3) If the conditions under which a prescription drug has been returned cast doubt on the drug's safety, identity, strength, quality, or purity, then the drug shall be destroyed, or returned to the supplier, unless examination, testing, or other investigation proves that the drug meets appropriate standards of safety, identity, strength, quality, and purity. In determining whether the conditions under which a drug has been returned cast doubt on the drug's safety, identity, strength, quality, or purity, the wholesale drug distributor shall consider, among other things, the conditions under which the drug has been held, stored, or shipped before or during its return and the condition of the drug and its container, carton, or labeling, as a result of storage or shipping.
(4) The recordkeeping requirements in paragraph (f) of this section shall be followed for all outdated, damaged, deteriorated, misbranded, or adulterated prescription drugs.
(f) Recordkeeping. (1) Wholesale drug distributors shall establish and maintain inventories and records of all transactions regarding the receipt and distribution or other disposition of prescription drugs. These records shall include the following information:
(i) The source of the drugs, including the name and principal address of the seller or transferor, and the address of the location from which the drugs were shipped;
(ii) The identity and quantity of the drugs received and distributed or disposed of; and
(iii) The dates of receipt and distribution or other disposition of the drugs.
(2) Inventories and records shall be made available for inspection and photocopying by authorized Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency officials for a period of 3 years after the date of their creation.
(3) Records described in this section that are kept at the inspection site or that can be immediately retrieved by computer or other electronic means shall be readily available for authorized inspection during the retention period. Records kept at a central location apart from the inspection site and not electronically retrievable shall be made available for inspection within 2 working days of a request by an authorized official of a Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency.
(g) Written policies and procedures. Wholesale drug distributors shall establish, maintain, and adhere to written policies and procedures, which shall be followed for the receipt, security, storage, inventory, and distribution of prescription drugs, including policies and procedures for identifying, recording, and reporting losses or thefts, and for correcting all errors and inaccuracies in inventories. Wholesale drug distributors shall include in their written policies and procedures the following:
(1) A procedure whereby the oldest approved stock of a prescription drug product is distributed first. The procedure may permit deviation from this requirement, if such deviation is temporary and appropriate.
(2) A procedure to be followed for handling recalls and withdrawals of prescription drugs. Such procedure shall be adequate to deal with recalls and withdrawals due to:
(i) Any action initiated at the request of the Food and Drug Administration or other Federal, State, or local law enforcement or other government agency, including the State licensing agency;
(ii) Any voluntary action by the manufacturer to remove defective or potentially defective drugs from the market; or
(iii) Any action undertaken to promote public health and safety by replacing of existing merchandise with an improved product or new package design.
(3) A procedure to ensure that wholesale drug distributors prepare for, protect against, and handle any crisis that affects security or operation of any facility in the event of strike, fire, flood, or other natural disaster, or other situations of local, State, or national emergency.
(4) A procedure to ensure that any outdated prescription drugs shall be segregated from other drugs and either returned to the manufacturer or destroyed. This procedure shall provide for written documentation of the disposition of outdated prescription drugs. This documentation shall be maintained for 2 years after disposition of the outdated drugs.
(h) Responsible persons. Wholesale drug distributors shall establish and maintain lists of officers, directors, managers, and other persons in charge of wholesale drug distribution, storage, and handling, including a description of their duties and a summary of their qualifications.
(i) Compliance with Federal, State, and local law. Wholesale drug distributors shall operate in compliance with applicable Federal, State, and local laws and regulations.
(1) Wholesale drug distributors shall permit the State licensing authority and authorized Federal, State, and local law enforcement officials to enter and inspect their premises and delivery vehicles, and to audit their records and written operating procedures, at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner, to the extent authorized by law.
(2) Wholesale drug distributors that deal in controlled substances shall register with the appropriate State controlled substance authority and with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and shall comply with all applicable State, local, and DEA regulations.
(j) Salvaging and reprocessing. Wholesale drug distributors shall be subject to the provisions of any applicable Federal, State, or local laws or regulations that relate to prescription drug product salvaging or reprocessing, including parts 207, 210, and 211 of this chapter.
Source: eCFRURL: https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2024-07-01/title-21.xmlFetched: 7/26/2026