Questions before a care plan
Ask why a pharmacy-made version is being proposed.
A different preparation needs a reason. Ask what need the ready-made product would leave unmet, and write down the reply.
In compounding, a patient’s needs lead to a medicine being prepared by a doctor or pharmacist.
US compounding position as checked September 26, 2026.
Compounded preparations reach the market without prior FDA (the Food and Drug Administration) checks of their quality, safety, or ability to help.
An approved product may leave a patient’s needs unmet; compounding can fill that gap. The practice is not unlawful in itself.
The reason has to be more than the label.
Rules for regular pharmacies limit repeated preparation of copies of commercially available medicines.
The clinician writing your prescription must decide that the changed medicine would make an important difference for you compared with the ready-made medicine. The difference has to be more than saving money.
The September 26, 2026 check found semaglutide and tirzepatide injections absent from the FDA shortage list.
A local stock problem does not equal a national shortage listing.
Ask for the medical reason for making this version and the rule that allows the pharmacy to make it. A general claim about “custom care” does not explain either.
Notes for this chapter
- FDA on the purpose and limits of compounding
The source for the distinction between a patient need and product approval.
- FDA on copies and resolved shortages
Read the conditions as well as the shortage status.
Write here, then print a copy before closing or reloading.