A California reporting rule changes on January 1, 2026 for two specific medications. The change affects what dispensers send to the state CURES database; it does not by itself change how a patient should use a prescription.
CURES is California’s prescription drug monitoring program. Because its name often appears in discussions about controlled substances, a change in CURES reporting can sound like a change in prescribing or dispensing rules. Assembly Bill 82 makes a narrower change: beginning January 1, 2026, specified dispensations are no longer reported to CURES.
Quick Answer
Starting January 1, 2026, California law prohibits health care providers and dispensers from reporting prescriptions for or dispensing of testosterone or mifepristone to CURES or the Department of Justice’s contracted prescription-data vendor. California DOJ says existing CURES records for those medications must be removed on or before January 1, 2027. This is a reporting and records change; it does not tell patients to start, stop or alter a medication and does not erase other prescription, dispensing or clinical requirements that may apply.
What Is CURES?
The California Department of Justice describes CURES—the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System—as the state’s prescription drug monitoring program. It contains dispensing information for Schedule II, III, IV and certain Schedule V controlled substances and is used by authorized health care practitioners, pharmacists and oversight agencies under California law.
CURES is not the same thing as a pharmacy’s patient profile, a prescriber’s medical record or an insurance claim history. Those systems can contain different information for different purposes.
What Changes on January 1, 2026?
Assembly Bill 82, signed in October 2025, created a specific exception to CURES reporting. The California Department of Justice instructed CURES data submitters that, effective January 1, 2026, dispensations of testosterone or mifepristone must not be reported to DOJ, CURES or the contracted prescription-data processing vendor.
- Through Dec. 31, 2025
- `Existing CURES reporting requirements remain in effect for covered dispensations.
- Starting Jan. 1, 2026
- Testosterone and mifepristone dispensing must not be reported to CURES under AB 82.
- By Jan. 1, 2027
- DOJ must remove existing CURES records for testosterone and mifepristone that were in the database before 2026.
Narrow Reporting Change
AB 82 does not remove all controlled-substance reporting from CURES. California DOJ continues to describe CURES as the state database for Schedule II–V controlled-substance prescription information, subject to the specific exceptions created by law.
What the CURES Change Does Not Tell a Patient to Do
A database-reporting change is not a medication instruction. It does not mean a patient should change a dose, stop treatment, request a different medication or assume a prescription can be filled without the normal legal and clinical requirements.
The prescriber remains responsible for treatment decisions. The dispensing pharmacy must still follow applicable prescription, identification, validity, dispensing and recordkeeping requirements. Insurance coverage rules are separate again and may still apply regardless of what is or is not reported to CURES.
What Might a Patient Notice at the Pharmacy?
Most patients may notice little or no change in the pickup process solely because of AB 82. A pharmacy may still confirm the prescription, patient information, prescriber details, refill status and other information it normally needs to dispense safely and lawfully.
If a question is specifically about what appears in CURES, the California DOJ CURES program is the authoritative source. If the question is about a Las Palmas Pharmacy prescription record, label, refill or dispensing history, ask the pharmacy directly.
Separate CURES questions from pharmacy-record questions.
If you are unsure which record you are looking at, Las Palmas Pharmacy can explain the information contained in its own dispensing records and direct state-system questions to the appropriate source.
Six Questions Patients Can Ask About the January Change
- What is CURES, and how is it different from my pharmacy profile?
- Which two medications are excluded from CURES reporting beginning January 1, 2026?
- Does the change alter my prescription directions or refill schedule?
- Will the pharmacy still keep its own dispensing record?
- When will older CURES records for these medications be removed?
- Who should I contact if I have a question about what is visible in CURES?
What Happens to Existing CURES Records?
California DOJ’s December 3, 2025 bulletin states that existing records for testosterone or mifepristone in CURES before January 1, 2026 must be removed on or before January 1, 2027. The Medical Board of California repeated that change in its December 19 notice.
That scheduled removal applies to the CURES database. It should not be confused with deletion of a pharmacy’s ordinary dispensing records, a prescriber’s medical records or an insurer’s records, which are governed by other requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does CURES stand for in California?
CURES stands for Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System. It is California’s prescription drug monitoring program maintained by the Department of Justice and contains dispensing information for covered controlled-substance prescriptions.
What changes in CURES on January 1, 2026?
Under Assembly Bill 82, dispensing of testosterone or mifepristone must no longer be reported to the California Department of Justice, CURES or its contracted prescription-data processing vendor beginning January 1, 2026.
Does AB 82 mean testosterone is no longer a controlled substance?
No. The California CURES reporting change does not itself change federal controlled-substance scheduling. It changes whether specified dispensing information is sent to CURES. Patients should continue to follow the prescription and ask their pharmacist or prescriber about medication-specific requirements.
Will my pharmacy still have a record of the prescription?
A CURES reporting exception is separate from the pharmacy’s own prescription and dispensing records. Pharmacies continue to maintain records required for their operations and under applicable law.
When will older testosterone or mifepristone records be removed from CURES?
California DOJ’s December 2025 bulletin states that existing CURES records for testosterone or mifepristone must be removed on or before January 1, 2027.
Should I change anything about my medication because CURES reporting changed?
No medication change should be made merely because a reporting rule changed. Take the medication according to the current prescription and contact the treating prescriber about treatment changes. Ask the pharmacy about dispensing, label or refill questions.
Have a Question About What This Reporting Change Means for Your Prescription?
Keep CURES reporting, pharmacy records and treatment decisions separate. Las Palmas Pharmacy can answer questions about prescriptions it dispenses; treatment changes belong with the prescriber, and CURES-system questions can be directed to California DOJ.
