PTCB Federal Requirements Practice Questions
Federal Requirements makes up 9 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest PTCB practice test. Here are 10 of the 36 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.
Updated by the Tigertest team. Weighted to the PTCB PTCE content outline effective January 2026. Federal law only; state rules vary.
1. A pharmacy is discarding an expired bulk container of warfarin at a concentration above 0.3%. Under RCRA, how is this waste classified?
- A.Non-hazardous pharmaceutical waste
- B.P-listed acutely hazardous waste
- C.Trace chemotherapy waste
- D.U-listed toxic hazardous waste
Answer: B. Warfarin above 0.3% is on the EPA P-list (P001), which covers acutely hazardous discarded commercial chemical products such as physostigmine and arsenic trioxide. The U-list covers toxic products, including warfarin at 0.3% or less, so the U-list choice is the tempting wrong answer; states may add stricter rules (varies by state).
2. A technician is sorting waste and has an empty IV bag and tubing from a completed chemotherapy infusion. Which container is appropriate?
- A.Black RCRA hazardous waste container
- B.Blue non-hazardous pharmaceutical container
- C.Red sharps and biohazard container
- D.Yellow trace chemotherapy container
Answer: D. Items that held chemotherapy and are now RCRA-empty, holding only trace amounts, go in yellow trace chemotherapy containers. Black bins are for bulk chemotherapy and other RCRA hazardous pharmaceutical waste, blue for non-hazardous pharmaceutical waste, and red for sharps and biohazardous waste.
3. A technician is preparing to compound an antineoplastic hazardous drug in a biological safety cabinet. Under USP <800>, which PPE is required?
- A.Double chemotherapy gloves and an impermeable gown
- B.One pair of nitrile examination gloves and a cotton lab coat
- C.Sterile latex gloves and a cloth isolation gown
- D.A surgical mask and a single pair of gloves
Answer: A. USP <800> requires two pairs of chemotherapy gloves tested to ASTM D6978 and a disposable gown shown to resist permeability by hazardous drugs when compounding, plus hair, beard and shoe covers. A single pair of exam gloves or a cloth coat or gown does not protect against permeation.
4. A pharmacy wants manufacturer credit for expired, unopened stock bottles of noncontrolled tablets. Which entity typically handles the return?
- A.The patient's prescribing physician
- B.A DEA-registered collection receptacle
- C.A reverse distributor
- D.The FDA MedWatch program
Answer: C. Reverse distributors take back expired or unwanted pharmacy stock, process manufacturer credit, and arrange proper disposal; DEA-registered reverse distributors also accept expired controlled substances. Collection receptacles are only for patient-owned medications, never pharmacy inventory, and MedWatch is for adverse event reporting.
5. A patient brings leftover oxycodone tablets to a pharmacy that is not registered with DEA as a collector. What should the technician do?
- A.Accept the tablets and return them to stock
- B.Accept the tablets and record them on Form 41
- C.Refer the patient to a registered collector or take-back event
- D.Accept the tablets and send them to the pharmacy's reverse distributor
Answer: C. Only DEA-registered collectors (through a collection receptacle or mail-back program) and law enforcement take-back events may accept patient-owned controlled substances, which are never pharmacy inventory. Returning them to stock or mixing them into the pharmacy's own waste or reverse-distributor returns is not permitted, and even at a registered collector staff may not count or sort receptacle contents.
6. Which drug is correctly paired with its federal controlled substance schedule?
- A.Pregabalin, Schedule V
- B.Testosterone, Schedule IV
- C.Methylphenidate, Schedule III
- D.Alprazolam, Schedule II
Answer: A. Pregabalin is Schedule V. Methylphenidate is Schedule II, alprazolam is Schedule IV, and testosterone is Schedule III, so each of the other pairings is off by at least one schedule.
7. A technician receives a new prescription for oxycodone 5 mg tablets. Which statement is correct under federal law?
- A.It may have up to five refills in six months
- B.It may be called in by phone for any patient
- C.It must be filled within 7 days of writing
- D.It may be electronic but cannot have refills
Answer: D. Schedule II prescriptions may be written or sent through a certified EPCS system, but they can never be refilled; a new prescription is needed each time. Federal law sets no expiration date for a CII prescription (many states do, so it varies by state), and phoned orders are allowed only in a true emergency.
8. A lorazepam prescription with 5 refills was filled originally and then refilled 3 times within 4 months. How many refills remain?
- A.1 refill
- B.2 refills
- C.3 refills
- D.4 refills
Answer: B. Lorazepam is Schedule IV, so up to 5 refills are allowed within 6 months of the date written. The original fill is not a refill, so 5 - 3 = 2 refills remain; choosing 1 wrongly counts the original fill as a refill.
9. A zolpidem prescription with 5 refills was written on January 15. The patient requests the next refill on July 20. What applies?
- A.Only a partial quantity may be dispensed
- B.The refill may not be dispensed; it expired July 15
- C.The refill may be dispensed; refills last one year
- D.The refill may be dispensed until all refills are used
Answer: B. Schedule III and IV prescriptions may not be filled or refilled more than 6 months after the date written: January 15 plus 6 months is July 15, so July 20 is too late. A one-year limit applies to many noncontrolled prescriptions under state law (varies by state), not to Schedule III-IV drugs.
10. A hydrocodone/acetaminophen prescription for 30 tablets is written May 3, and the patient requests only 10 tablets that day. What is the latest date for the remaining 20?
- A.July 2
- B.May 6
- C.May 10
- D.June 2
Answer: D. Under CARA, a Schedule II prescription partially filled at the patient's or prescriber's request may have remaining portions dispensed up to 30 days after the date written: May 3 plus 30 days is June 2, because May has 31 days. May 6 reflects the 72-hour rule, which applies only when the pharmacy cannot supply the full quantity.
Practice all 36 federal requirements questions, and the rest of the 200-question bank, in the free PTCB training sets. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
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