shorted. And they can be over as well.

For meds other than CII (like Kadian) many larger chains use a counting
machine. These are totally inaccurate over time. I have had many battles
with these machines. So if you hear and see one in your pharmacy, you
should count ALL of your meds on a routine basis. These machines most often OVERcount however, than under. It has to do with the calibration screws coming loose and letting more pills thru past the laser, rather than the reverse of shorting. (This of course leads to loss of revenue for the pharmacy).

For controls including CII almost every pharmacy now has double count rules, in place. The volume of RXs keeps going up everywhere, and haste is usually
the cause of a miscount.

For CII's especially pharmacies keep a daily LOG (called a perpetual inventory) and fill in the blanks for every
RX (some Mom and Pop ones do not). These logs are typically tallied at the
end of every month(some at the end of the week) However, I have seen some stores, those with especially high volumes of opiates keep a running count right on the BOTTLE. That is as the RX is filled, the bottle remaining itself is counted, to see if the tallies match. This is the best way, but also the most time consuming.

Employees can be dishonest. Techs come and go, and new help is untested for several months. One really does not know who the employee really is when first hired.
For this reason, you should bring up your short count with the pharmacist.
Many stores require tech initials right on the bottle now, for this reason.
Scarfing a few from each RX is a type of pilfering, and needs to be caught, if it is intentional.

Drugs like Kadian are not fast movers, like Vicodin. Errors with it can be caught quickly, and should show up on the daily log. High volume items are
harder to track, and much more easily diverted by employees.

It is always possible to request a count right at the counseling window.
Expect to be watched closely however, because customers as well as employees have ways of scamming when CII's are involved. This is not a reflection on you per se, but the climate today in our culture.

People are human, they get interrupted while working and can lose concentration, and they can be dishonest. So there are many factors.
If your pharmacy keeps a LOG carefully, and you bring this matter up, and they find an overage they will most likely give you what you are shorted.
However, I have seen "shorts" involving controls, not corrected for customers.
It all depends on the pharmacist, policy of chains, and the situation. If you get an OVERAGE, you cannot return them, as drugs are
not returnable. But I would let them know, so if their log is off they won't blame innocent employees. If you are OVER you can
offer to be shorted 3 next time when you get your next fill. (this will bring the log back to normal), but you don't have to offer that, and they most likely will not suggest it. (It will be considered an "error" not a internal theft).

Non controlled items are often given without questions. But because of strict inventory requirements CIIs are handled somewhat differently. Some chains even have security people come in weekly to check the logs and count the contents of the remaining bottles, now.
Oxycontin is the usual target, but I have seen Adderall get spot checked as well.

One of the biggest diversions I have ever seen occurred at a Mom and Pop, by a male tech,BTW. For now, insist on counting at the counter, before you leave. Your file will probably be flagged and a triple count will be done on your order. And the staff will be alerted to a possibly dishonest employee.