Schedule V drugs are described as which of the following?

• A. Low abuse potential; no prescription needed for adults over the age of 18
• B. High abuse potential; medical use but severe restrictions
• C. Over-the-counter with age restrictions
• D. Very high prescription limits

Answer: (A)

Scheduling for controlled substances ranks drugs by abuse potential and how tightly they’re regulated. Schedule V represents the lowest abuse potential among the scheduled drugs and is reserved for medicines with legitimate medical uses, often containing only small amounts of narcotics such as codeine for cough or antidiarrheal purposes. Because the potential for misuse is low, these substances are subject to looser controls than the higher schedules, and in many practice settings they can be dispensed with fewer prescription requirements, including being available to adults without a traditional prescription in some jurisdictions or under age-related rules. Among the given options, this description best matches Schedule V.

The other descriptions don’t fit as well: one option describes high abuse potential, which is not true for Schedule V; another implies over-the-counter status universally, which isn’t guaranteed across states and contexts; and another talks about very high prescription limits, which contradicts Schedule V’s looser controls.