Narcotics; monitoring of narcotics traffic

The movement of narcotics in pharmacies, medical and dental practices, hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, hospices and various other facilities is monitored by the health authorities.

Street address

Mariahilfplatz 17
81541 München

Postal address

Postfach 90 07 51

81507 München

Mehr zur Behörde

According to federal law, the highest state authorities, in this case the Bavarian State Ministry of Health and Care (StMGP), are generally responsible for monitoring medical narcotics traffic as so-called drug monitoring authorities, unless this state authority assigns responsibility to another body. The federal states, including Bavaria, make regular use of this option.

The StMGP has assigned this task to the district administrative authorities by ordinance, so that they are responsible through their health authorities for monitoring medical narcotics traffic in pharmacies, medical and dental practices, hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, hospices, specialized outpatient palliative care facilities, rescue service facilities and facilities where treatment with the substitution drug diamorphine takes place. They are also responsible for the prosecution and punishment of administrative offenses arising from narcotics law. Municipalities that do not perform the tasks of the health authorities involve the locally responsible health authority.

Objects of the inspection are in particular

Proof of the whereabouts and stock of narcotics. In particular, it must be determined whether the prescribed index cards or narcotics registers are used, properly kept and stored as evidence of the whereabouts and inventory of the narcotics (Section 13 BtMVV).
Narcotics prescriptions and narcotics requisition forms. In particular, it must be checked whether the provisions on prescribing narcotics have been observed (Section 13 (1) BtMG, Sections 1 to 11 BtMVV). In addition, compliance with the requirements for the orderly storage of prescriptions and request slips and for dispensing slips in accordance with the Narcotics Internal Trade Ordinance (BtMBinHV) must be checked.
Storage of narcotics. It must be determined whether the narcotics are stored separately and secured against unauthorized removal (§ 15 sentence 1 BtMG). The "Guidelines on measures for securing stocks of narcotics in hospitals, public pharmacies, doctors' surgeries and old people's and nursing homes" issued by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices - Federal Opium Agency - are taken into account here.
Records on the destruction of narcotics.
Stock of narcotics. Inventory checks are generally only to be carried out on a random basis.
Monitoring of narcotics traffic in substitution, in particular with regard to the above-mentioned areas.

Reports or reports of suspected violations of narcotics regulations in the above-mentioned medical facilities must therefore be addressed to the local health authority responsible for the facility.

Narcotics (BtM) may only be prescribed on the official forms provided for this purpose, the BtM prescriptions and the BtM request forms, and only by doctors. BtM prescriptions and BtM request forms are issued by the Federal Opium Agency.

The legal basis for prescribing and dispensing on prescription of BtM can be found in § 13 of the Narcotics Act (BtMG). This states, among other things, that narcotics may only be prescribed if their use on the human or animal body is justified and the intended purpose cannot be achieved in any other way. For therapeutic purposes, only the narcotics listed in Annex III of the Narcotics Act (BtMG) may be prescribed by a doctor, dentist or veterinarian.

What must be observed when prescribing narcotics is regulated in the Narcotics Prescription Ordinance (BtMVV).