From 1 January 2008, optometrists accredited to prescribe under State or Territory legislation can apply for approval as PBS prescribers (authorised optometrists). Information for optometrists on becoming a PBS prescriber is available from Medicare Australia.
The medications listed in this section are for prescribing by authorised optometrists only. Optometrists must not write PBS prescriptions for medicines listed elsewhere in the PBS Schedule.
The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) is responsible for making recommendations regarding preparations for inclusion in the optometrist section.
Some products are included in more than one section of the Schedule. For a prescription to be eligible for subsidy, prescribers must ensure that they prescribe under the PBS only those medicines, and in accordance with the restrictions, listed for their practitioner type. Listing details for the same product may differ between sections and different PBS item codes apply for each prescriber type.
Optometrist PBS prescriptions are identifiable by colour, and include the words ‘PBS/RPBS optometrist’. Prescriptions must include the optometrist’s PBS prescriber number. The same optometrist prescription form is used to prescribe unrestricted, restricted or authority items. Only one item is allowed per form. Optometrist PBS prescriptions may include repeats.
Regulation 24 does not apply for optometrist prescribing. An optometrist cannot direct that original and repeat supplies of pharmaceutical benefits be supplied at the one time.
Authority prescriptions: Authority prescriptions for authority required items, or for increased quantities or repeats, require prior approval from Medicare Australia or the DVA for each prescription. (Refer to Prescribing Medicines — Information for PBS prescribers and Supplying Medicines — What Pharmacists Need to Know, for more information on authority prescriptions.) DVA approval for non-Schedule items is not available for optometrist prescribing.
RPBS: Optometrists approved as PBS prescribers may write prescriptions for supply under the RPBS. The list of optometrist medicines under the RPBS is the same as the PBS. There are no optometrist listings in the Repatriation Schedule for prescribing for veterans only. There is no provision for optometrist prescribers to request approval to prescribe items that are not included in the PBS optometrist list (non-Schedule items).
State and Territory requirements: Optometrists may prescribe medications as private prescriptions according to their State/Territory prescribing accreditation. The medicines which can be prescribed differ between States and Territories. It is the optometrist’s responsibility to ensure adherence to State/Territory law for all prescriptions (PBS and private) and additionally to all PBS requirements for PBS/RPBS prescriptions.