Pharmacy Daily | Online monitoring soon

A REAL-TIME online monitoring system for codeine products is likely to be implemented quickly, according to widespread enthusiastic responses to the decision to defer any final decision on upscheduling (PD breaking news). The Pharmacy Guild of Australia, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia and the Australian Self Medication Industry have all hailed the move as a response to their “legitimate concerns”. The Health Department said the delay allows the Advisory Committee on Medicines Scheduling to scrutinise the 127 submissions on the issue - 113 opposing the move to S4 - with any final implementation if required not effective until 2017 at the earliest. Guild national president George Tambassis said the Guild would now move quickly to implement a real time recording system for codeine sales, with the Guild also supporting mandatory warnings and increased consumer education. ASMI ceo Deon Schoombie said the deferral reflects the views of the great majority of stakeholders and will allow consumers to continue to have appropriate pharmacy access to codeinecontaining medicines. And PSA national president Joe Demarte urged that the extra time allowed by the deferral be used to prepare a Regulation Impact Statement on the proposal, as recommended in the PSA submission.

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