NRS 453.421 – Penalties, Punishments and Sentences

Nevada Revised Statute 453.421 makes doctor shopping a category C felony punishable by one to five years in prison and a possible $10,000 fine. The same penalties also apply to health care providers, drug makers, or suppliers who unlawfully prescribe or dispense controlled substances.

NRS 453.421. A person who violates any provision of NRS 453.371 to 453.391, inclusive, is guilty of a category C felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130.

Legal Analysis

NRS 453.421 makes doctor shopping and wrongfully administering drugs a category C felony in Nevada. The punishment includes:

• One to five years in Nevada State Prison, and
• Up to $10,000 in fines (at the court’s discretion)¹

Specifically, it is a category C felony to take any of the following five actions:

1. Unlawfully taking drugs from a health care provider, pharmacy, drugmaker, or store;
2. Getting drugs from more than one provider without informing the providers of this (“doctor shopping”);
3. A health care provider prescribing drugs for illegitimate medical purposes;
4. A health care provider prescribing Schedule II drugs for him/herself or his/her spouse or children except in emergency cases; or
5. Pharmacists filling orders they have reason to believe are not valid.²

Depending on the case, criminal charges can be dropped if the defendant did not act knowingly or if the police found the evidence through an unlawful search. Category C felony convictions can be sealed from the defendant’s criminal record five years after the case closes, but dismissals can be sealed immediately.³

See our related articles on unlawfully obtaining prescription drugs (NRS 453.391) and unlawfully administering or prescribing drugs (NRS 453.381).

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Legal References