Manitoba Opens Consultation on Pharmacy Controlled-Substance Rules

The College of Pharmacists of Manitoba (CPhM) is asking pharmacy professionals, system partners and the public to comment on proposed changes to controlled-substance practice requirements. Announced in the College’s October 23, 2026 update, the 30-day consultation runs through November 22. The proposal follows the federal Controlled Substances Regulations that took effect October 1 and is intended to align Manitoba’s pharmacy directions with the new framework while strengthening accountability. CPhM’s consultation page contains the draft documents and response form.

What CPhM is proposing

The centrepiece is a new Controlled Substance Accountability Practice Direction. If approved, CPhM says it would replace its existing Narcotic and Controlled Drug Accountability Guidelines and several sections of the Drug Distribution and Storage Practice Direction. The College is also proposing amendments to six existing directions: Drug Distribution and Storage, Pharmacy Facilities, Permanent and Temporary Pharmacy Closures, Transfer of Care, Refill History Recording System, and Exempt Codeine Preparations.

CPhM says the proposed package may affect how pharmacy professionals handle, monitor, store and destroy controlled substances, and clarify minimum facility-security requirements. The College describes the purpose as deterring diversion from pharmacies and promoting controlled-substance accountability. The linked drafts and executive summary are the appropriate sources for the detailed proposed wording; this announcement alone should not be treated as a final interpretation of any requirement.

A consultation, not a new rule in force

The proposed directions have not yet received final approval. CPhM says responses will be provided to its Professional Practice Committee and Council to inform a decision on the final directions. Pharmacy teams should therefore distinguish the consultation drafts from the rules currently governing their operations. The federal regulation’s effective date does not by itself make every proposed Manitoba practice-direction change final.

This is a Manitoba regulatory process. Its practical reach is broad for the province’s community and institutional pharmacies because the draft package covers controlled-drug accountability and facility operations, but it is not a nationwide pharmacy rule change. The federal regulation is the national backdrop; CPhM is proposing how Manitoba’s local directions should align with it.

Practice guidance for pharmacists

• Review CPhM’s executive summary and each draft direction that applies to your setting, especially the accountability, distribution, storage and facility-security sections.
• Compare draft language with current pharmacy policies for receiving, recording, monitoring, storing, transferring, returning and destroying controlled substances.
• Ask the pharmacy manager or designated lead to identify workflow, training, recordkeeping or premises-security questions that should be clarified before approval.
• Submit specific feedback through CPhM’s consultation survey by November 22, 2026, if you or your organization wish to comment.
• Do not treat draft text as an operative direction; maintain current legal and College requirements while monitoring CPhM’s final decision and implementation information.

What happens next

After the consultation closes, CPhM says the responses will inform committee and Council consideration. Until the College publishes its final decision and any implementation dates, pharmacies should avoid making compliance changes solely on the basis of proposed wording. The consultation is a timely opportunity for pharmacists and pharmacy teams to flag how proposed accountability standards would work in real dispensing, inventory and premises-security processes.