Lorena O'Neil (Louisiana Illuminator)

Pharmacists insist no policies have changed as doctors try to determine why their patients have to chase down medication prior to health procedures.

“The last thing I need to be asking myself during an emergency … is: ‘Could I go to jail for this?’” a doctor said.

In one New Orleans-area hospital, they are already practicing timed drills, running from delivery rooms to the locked medicine cabinet where controlled substances are stored, to see how long it will take. In one recent drill, it took more than two minutes for doctors and nurses to retrieve misoprostol for a pretend patient who was bleeding out.

A drug that stops post-delivery bleeding will become a controlled dangerous substance on Oct. 1, placing restrictions on quick, life-saving access.

A lifesaving drug used to stop postpartum hemorrhaging will be pulled off emergency response carts once it becomes a "controlled dangerous substance."