New York Laws
Title 7 - Offenses, Violations and Enforcement
3381 - Sale and Possession of Hypodermic Syringes and Hypodermic Needles.

(a) pursuant to a prescription of a practitioner, which for the
purposes of this section shall include a patient specific prescription
form as provided for in the education law; or
(b) to persons who have been authorized by the commissioner to obtain
and possess such instruments; or
(c) by a pharmacy licensed under article one hundred thirty-seven of
the education law, health care facility licensed under article
twenty-eight of this chapter or a health care practitioner who is
otherwise authorized to prescribe the use of hypodermic needles or
syringes within his or her scope of practice; provided, however, that
such sale or furnishing: (i) shall only be to a person eighteen years of
age or older; and (ii) shall be in accordance with subdivision four of
this section; or
(d) under subdivision three of this section.
2. Any person selling or furnishing a hypodermic syringe or hypodermic
needle pursuant to a prescription shall record upon the prescription,
his or her signature or electronic signature, and the date of the sale
or furnishing of the hypodermic syringe or hypodermic needle. Such
prescription shall be retained on file for a period of five years and be
readily accessible for inspection by any public officer or employee
engaged in the enforcement of this section. Such prescription may be
refilled not more than the number of times specifically authorized by
the prescriber upon the prescription, provided however no such
authorization shall be effective for a period greater than two years
from the date the prescription is signed.
3. The commissioner shall, subject to subdivision four of this
section, designate persons, or by regulation, classes of persons who may
obtain hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles without prescription
and the manner in which such transactions may take place and the records
thereof which shall be maintained.
4. (a) A person eighteen years of age or older may obtain and possess
a hypodermic syringe or hypodermic needle pursuant to paragraph (c) of
subdivision one of this section.
(b) Subject to regulations of the commissioner, a pharmacy licensed
under article one hundred thirty-seven of the education law, a health
care facility licensed under article twenty-eight of this chapter or a
health care practitioner who is otherwise authorized to prescribe the
use of hypodermic needles or syringes within his or her scope of
practice, may obtain and possess hypodermic needles or syringes for the
purpose of selling or furnishing them pursuant to paragraph (c) of
subdivision one of this section or for the purpose of disposing of them.
(c) Sale or furnishing of hypodermic syringes or hypodermic needles to
direct consumers pursuant to this subdivision by a pharmacy, health care
facility, or health care practitioner shall be accompanied by a safety
insert. Such safety insert shall be developed or approved by the
commissioner and shall include, but not be limited to, (i) information
on the proper use of hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles; (ii)
the risk of blood borne diseases that may result from the use of
hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles; (iii) methods for preventing
the transmission or contraction of blood borne diseases; (iv) proper
hypodermic syringe and hypodermic needle disposal practices; (v)
information on the dangers of injection drug use, and how to access drug
treatment; (vi) a toll-free phone number for information on the human
immunodeficiency virus; and (vii) information on the safe disposal of

hypodermic syringes and hypodermic needles including the relevant
provisions of the environmental conservation law relating to the
unlawful release of regulated medical waste. The safety insert shall be
attached to or included in the hypodermic syringe and hypodermic needle
packaging, or shall be given to the purchaser at the point of sale or
furnishing in brochure form.
(d) In addition to the requirements of paragraph (c) of subdivision
one of this section, a pharmacy licensed under article one hundred
thirty-seven of the education law may sell or furnish hypodermic needles
or syringes only if such pharmacy stores such needles and syringes in a
manner that makes them available only to authorized personnel and not
openly available to customers.
(e) A pharmacy registered under article one hundred thirty-seven of
the education law may offer counseling and referral services to
customers purchasing hypodermic syringes for the purpose of: preventing
injection drug abuse; the provision of drug treatment; preventing and
treating hepatitis C; preventing drug overdose; testing for the human
immunodeficiency virus; and providing pre-exposure prophylaxis and
non-occupational post-exposure prophylaxis. The content of such
counseling and referral shall be at the professional discretion of the
pharmacist.
(f) The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations necessary
to implement the provisions of this subdivision which shall include: (i)
standards for advertising to the public the availability for retail sale
or furnishing of hypodermic syringes or needles; and (ii) a requirement
that such pharmacies, health care facilities and health care
practitioners cooperate in a safe disposal of used hypodermic needles or
syringes.
(g) The commissioner may, upon the finding of a violation of this
section, suspend for a determinate period of time the sale or furnishing
of syringes by a specific entity.
5. The provisions of this section shall not apply to farmers engaged
in livestock production or to those persons supplying farmers engaged in
livestock production, provided that:
(a) Hypodermic syringes and needles shall be stored in a secure,
locked storage container.
(b) At any time the department may request a document outlining:
(i) the number of hypodermic needles and syringes purchased over the
past calendar year;
(ii) a record of all hypodermic needles used over the past calendar
year; and
(iii) a record of all hypodermic needles and syringes destroyed over
the past calendar year.
(c) Hypodermic needles and syringes shall be destroyed in a manner
consistent with the provisions set forth in section thirty-three hundred
eighty-one-a of this article.