Under the banner of patient safety, lawmakers in several states are considering bills that would restrict patients’ ability to access compounded drugs.
 
Proponents of the bills say they are meant to address counterfeit drugs, bad actors, and bogus “pharmacy” websites. But in practice, they would make it harder for state-licensed pharmacies to provide medications that many patients rely on when standard drugs don’t work or aren’t available.

The healthcare system is built for standardized care, not for every real-world need. Compounding exists because patients don’t experience illness at scale.

Patients rely on compounded medications when:

• A drug is in shortage or unavailable

• A child needs a liquid or non-standard dose

• A patient can’t tolerate fillers or dyes in commercial products

• Standard therapies fail, including for menopause, thyroid conditions, dermatology, and other chronic needs

When compounding is restricted, patients are not redirected to safer alternatives. In many cases, there are no alternatives.

• Instead of targeting illegal online sellers or counterfeit products, these bills place new requirements on licensed pharmacies that already operate under federal and state oversight.
  
  
• They import manufacturing-style rules into patient-specific pharmacy practice and condition care on documentation and inspection standards that pharmacies often cannot control.
  
  
• The result is fewer pharmacies able to provide care — and fewer options for patients.
  
  

• Lawmakers should pause these bills and focus on enforcing existing laws against illegal drug sales, while preserving access to lawful, patient-specific pharmacy compounding.
  
  

• Patients should not lose care because of paperwork designed for factories, not people.