Updates and alerts

• Rescheduling
• Declared major events - Prescriptions and purchase orders from visiting health practitioner during events declared under the Major Events Act 2014.
• National Residential Medication Chart Initative
• National Poisons Reform
• Wild dog and fox control

Rescheduling

Hyaluronic acid

Hyaluronic acid and its polymers in all injectable forms will become Schedule 4 restricted drugs on 1 October 2019.

Read information for sonographers and radiographers on the rescheduling of hyaluronic acid
(PDF 132 kB)

Queensland Health (Drugs and Poisons) Regulation amendments

Amendments to the Queensland Health (Drugs and Poisons) Regulation 1996 (the HDPR) have been approved by Queensland's Governor in Council, effective 9 November 2018. The fact sheets below provide information for the professions affected by these changes:

• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - clinical perfusionists (PDF, 177KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - endorsed optometrists (PDF, 180KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - endorsed midwives (PDF, 131KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - endorsed podiatrists (PDF, 180KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - nuclear medicine technologists (PDF, 180KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - nurse practitioners (PDF, 132KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - optometrists (PDF, 168KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - physiotherapists (PDF, 177KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - respiratory scientists (PDF, 180KB)
• Changes to scheduled medicine authorities - speech pathologists (PDF, 177KB)
• Safe administration of medicines by speech pathologists (PDF, 138KB)

Declared major event

The Major Events Act 2014 includes provision where visiting health practitioners associated with declared major events may be allowed to write prescriptions or to purchase Pharmacy-only (S2) or Pharmacist-only (S3) medicines by wholesale.

• Dispensing records - fact sheet to inform pharmacists of a requirement to send a copy of dispensed prescriptions issued by visiting health practitioners during major event exemption periods to Medicines Regulation and Quality.
• Wholesale sales of S2 and S3 medicines - fact sheet to inform medicines wholesalers, medicines manufacturers and pharmacists of a requirement to send a report of Schedule 2 (Pharmacy Only) or Schedule 3 (Pharmacist Only) medicines sold by wholesale to visiting health practitioners during major event exemption periods to Medicines Regulation and Quality.

National residential medication chart

The National Residential Medication Chart (NRMC) enables supply and pharmaceutical benefits scheme (PBS) claiming without a separate PBS prescription.

• Pharmacists in Queensland can dispense a prescribed medicine from a residential aged care medication chart if:
  • the medication chart meets the requirements of the National Health (Residential Medication Chart) Determination 2012 (PDF, 255KB) (the Determination), note the Determination does not include controlled drugs (schedule 8)
  • a prescriber includes their qualifications on the medication chart (stamp or hand written on the front page next to the prescribers signature)
• Queensland Health Full position statement - details the requirements to ensure you meet national legislative requirements and state regulations.

National poisons reform

The Standing Council on Health (SCOH) released a consultation Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) on strategies to implement a national approach to poisonous chemical controls, as set out in the Standard for Uniform Scheduling of Medicines and Poisons (SUSMP).

The consultation RIS considers options to improve national consistency of poisonous chemical regulation. Currently, inconsistencies exist in the nature and level of poisonous chemical controls, and how they are applied across jurisdictions. These inconsistencies directly increase compliance costs for business, and indirectly for consumers, without improving regulatory outcomes.

Feedback was sought on options for reform in the areas of regulation relating to controls of chemicals in Schedules 5, 6 and 7 of the SUSMP, and a selection of Appendices in the SUSMP.

• View the Regulatory Impact Statement consultation paper
• View the Decision Regulatory Impact Statement

The Decision RIS

• made a total of 12 recommendations relating to storage, disposal, labelling, packaging, advertising and hawking/supply of product samples contained in Schedules 5, 6 and 7 of the Poisons Standard
• considered options for the implementation and decision making regarding nationally consistent regulatory measures
• recommended that the adoption of the Poisons Standard by reference was the preferred method for implementation.

Once the final amendments to the Poisons Standard have been accepted by the Medicines and Poisons Scheduling Secretariat the state and territory governments will commence amendments to their legislation to adopt the revised Poisons Standard.

Wild dog and fox control

Landholders are able to obtain prepared baits containing not more than 0.03% fluoroacetic acid (1080) from authorised persons under the Biosecurity Act 2014, to control wild dog and foxes. The prepared baits can only be used in accordance with the conditions established by the authorised person. These conditions are established at the time the baits are provided and generally specify requirements relating to:

• the specific locations baiting can occur
• distances baits can be laid from stock routes, fenced boundaries, declared roads, water bodies, dwellings and towns;
• requirements relating to neighbour notification including at least 72 hours' notice
• signage requirements prior to and post baiting
• when to retrieve baits and
• safety precautions.

All landholders who use the baits are required by law to abide by the conditions established when the baits were provided.