Ohio Registered Pharmacy Technician Practice Test

If a prescriber writes a prescription for a brand medication with a generic equivalent but does not include a DAW code, how should the prescription be processed?

1. As a no DAW (Zero)

2. As a DAW-1

3. As a DAW-2

4. As a generic medication

The correct answer is: As a no DAW (Zero)

When a prescriber writes a prescription for a brand-name medication but does not indicate a Dispense As Written (DAW) code, the prescription is generally processed as a no DAW (zero). This means that the pharmacy has the authority to substitute the brand medication with its generic equivalent, provided that such substitution is lawful and the generic is available. In scenarios where a prescriber intends for a brand to be dispensed specifically and would like to prevent substitution, they would typically include a DAW-1 code, which explicitly states that the brand medication must be dispensed as written. By omitting a DAW code, the prescriber is neither endorsing nor prohibiting the substitution, leaving that decision to the pharmacy and allowing the use of a generic medication when appropriate. This aligns with pharmacy practices and state regulations that encourage the use of generics to help reduce costs for patients when they are available. Therefore, processing the prescription as no DAW allows pharmacies to fulfill prescriptions in a cost-effective manner while adhering to state guidelines regarding medication dispensing practices.