1. A modular system for distributing and dispensing medications, including: portable memory means for storing data representative of patient medication dispensing information and capable of use with other elements of the system including programming means, dispenser means and monitor means; programming means, including means for releasably receiving the portable memory means, for receiving medication dispensing information and for writing data representative of the medication dispensing information to the portable memory means; dispenser means for dispensing prescribed medications, the dispenser means including: memory receiving means for releasably receiving the portable memory means to which data representative of the medication dispensing information has been written through use of the programming means; read means for reading the data representative of the medication dispensing information from the portable memory means when the portable memory means is positioned in the memory receiving means; container means having a plurality of individual compartments for storing prescribed medications; control means coupled to the read means for providing control signals as a function of the data representative of the medication dispensing information; access means coupled to the control means and responsive to the control signals for making the prescribed medications within individual compartments of the container means accessible to a patient at prescribed times in accordance with the data representative of the medication dispensing information; sensor means for sensing patient compliance information representative of whether the prescribed medications were accessed by the patient when made accessible by the access means; write means coupled to the sensor means for writing data representative of the patient compliance information to the portable memory means when the portable memory means is positioned in the memory receiving means; and monitor means, including memory receiving means for releasably receiving the portable memory means, for providing a display of the medication dispensing information and the patient compliance information stored by the portable memory means; wherein the programming means, dispenser means and monitor means can be positioned at locations remote from each other.