Since prescription drugs are obtained and used by so many people in Texas every year, it might seem like an innocent gesture to share your prescription medicine with a person who is suffering from an allergy or muscle pain. However, prescription drug distribution is strictly regulated by law. Giving your prescription medication to anyone else may land you in serious legal trouble.
While you may have legally obtained prescription medication from your doctor, that does not mean you can freely give that medicine to anybody you please. According to Findlaw, prescribed drugs can only be consumed by the person the medicine is prescribed to. No one else can take the medicine or possess it, so giving prescribed medication to others can put you in serious legal jeopardy.
It is also illegal to receive drugs that are only legal by a prescription. Just because a doctor prescribes medication does not mean that same medication can be obtained elsewhere like an over the counter drug. So if you were to give prescribed medicine to another person, it would not only be illegal for you, but also for the recipient. Similarly, a person cannot be prescribed medicine from a party who is unauthorized to write a prescription.
Prescription medicine can have dangerous side effects to people who it is not legally prescribed to. Taking the wrong drug can result in bodily injury, addiction and even death. This is why the law takes unauthorized prescription drug distribution so seriously. Even an intent to distribute prescription drugs can have legal consequences.
This article is only intended to educate readers on prescription drug possession and is not to be taken as legal advice.