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Pharmacy Location Rules and the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority (ACPA)

This site provides information about the Pharmacy Location Rules and the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority (ACPA).

• Change to ACPA Meeting Dates for Late 2012

Please note that the meeting dates and application lodgement timeframes for meetings in late 2012 have been changed to provide a more efficient process during the Christmas and New Year holiday period. Specifically the changes affect the November and December meetings.

Please refer to the updated table of meeting dates (current as at 2 April 2012) listed on this webpage.

Important Information

• Application Lodgement Dates for Rules 125, 126 and 127

Applications for the Pharmacy Location Rules 125 (Short distance relocation more than 1km), 126 (Long distance relocation), and 127 (Relocation to a population growth area) must be made before Monday 16 April 2012 in order to satisfy the time requirement for these Rules.

It is suggested that any applicant lodging an application under these Rules do so on or before Friday 13 April 2012 to avoid any unforeseen issues which may delay the registration of the application (for example, the application form is incomplete, mail or email delivery issues, etc).

It is also recommended that applicants contact the relevant office in the Department of Human Services (Medicare) on 132 290 for any questions regarding the registration of applications, and to confirm that their application has been received.

Pharmacy Location Rules

The Pharmacy Location Rules (the Rules) are a fundamental component of the Fifth Community Pharmacy Agreement (the Fifth Agreement) between the Commonwealth of Australia (as represented by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing) and the Pharmacy Guild of Australia (the Guild). This Agreement commenced on 1 July 2010 and terminates on 30 June 2015.

The Rules relate to the establishment of a new pharmacy or the relocation of an existing pharmacy which has approval to provide PBS medicines under section 90 of the National Health Act 1953.

An independent review of the Rules was conducted under the terms of the Fourth Community Pharmacy Agreement, and the final report is available on this website. Following the review and further consultation with key stakeholders, the amendments to the Rules were agreed by the Department and the Guild as required under the Fifth Agreement.

The Minister for Health and Ageing (the Minister) has approved the amendments by signing the National Health (Australian Community Pharmacy Authority Rules) Determination 2011 made under section 99L of the National Health Act 1953 (the Act), commonly referred to as the Pharmacy Location Rules (the Rules).

The amendments, which took effect on 18 October 2011, are intended to enhance and simplify the Rules and the application process, whilst continuing to encourage pharmacies to locate in areas of community need.

The Rules remain consistent with the overall objective of the National Medicines Policy to improve the health outcomes of all Australians through access to and quality use of medicines.

The Rules set out location-based criteria which must be met in order for the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority (the ACPA) to recommend approval of a pharmacist. The ACPA cannot override the requirements of the Rules. It can only recommend that an application be approved if it is satisfied that all of the requirements of the Rule, under which the application was made, have been met. Similarly, the Authority is unable to recommend that an application be approved if it is not satisfied that each of the requirements have been met.

All applications are to be lodged through the Department of Human Services (Medicare) and require the use of a new application form available on the Medicare website. Applicants wishing to lodge an application for consideration under the amended Rules should consult the Pharmacy Location Rules – Applicant’s Handbook, v1.0, 18 October 2011 (PDF 582 KB).

Australian Community Pharmacy Authority (ACPA)

The ACPA is an independent statutory authority established under section 99J of the Act.

The ACPA has six part-time members, five of whom are appointed by the Minister and one appointed by the Secretary to the Department of Health and Ageing (the Secretary).

The ACPA considers applications for approval to supply pharmaceutical benefits under section 90 of the Act and makes recommendations to delegated officers as to whether or not an application should be approved.

Note: The Secretary’s responsibilities concerning the approval of pharmacists have been conferred on the Chief Executive Medicare, who has delegated these powers to certain officers in Medicare.

In making its recommendation to the Secretary’s delegate in Medicare, the ACPA must comply with the requirements specified in the Determination made by the Minister.

The Department of Health and Ageing provides secretariat services to the ACPA. The ACPA Secretariat also assists applicants with enquiries about the Rules, and serves as the liaison between pharmacists and the ACPA.

Contact details are as follows:

Australian Community Pharmacy Authority Secretariat
Department of Health and Ageing
GPO Box 9848 (MDP 953)
CANBERRA ACT 2601

Telephone: 02 6289 2419
Facsmile: 02 6289 2365
Email: acpamail@health.gov.au

Applications for approval to supply pharmaceutical benefits under section 90 of the National Health Act 1953 Top of page

The Pharmacy Location Rules – Applicant’s Handbook, v1.0, 18 October 2011 (PDF 582 KB) provides pharmacists with comprehensive information about:

• the Rules and the ACPA;
• the application process including the requirements that must be satisfied and the types of information that must be included in an application; and
• seeking further information or assistance.

It is up to the applicant to select the rule which best suits their situation as each rule has different requirements. Applicants must satisfy all of the requirements for a particular rule if they are to receive a recommendation for approval from the ACPA.

A completed application form must be lodged with the Department of Human Services (Medicare), together with all of the supporting documents before the deadline for the corresponding ACPA meeting. The Department of Human Services (Medicare) will register applications before forwarding them to the ACPA secretariat in the Department of Health and Ageing.

Please note: It is advisable for an applicant to retain the original documentation and provide copies with the application as no paperwork will be returned.

ACPA Meeting dates 2011-2012

The ACPA meeting dates for 2012 and the corresponding application lodgement timeframes for complete applications to be received by the Department of Human Services (Medicare) are outlined in the table below (current as at 2 April 2012).

Please note these dates are subject to change.

ACPA Meeting date	Timeframe to lodge an Application with the Department of Human Services (Medicare)
Friday	From	To
30 March 2012	Tuesday 17 January 2012	Monday 20 February 2012
27 April 2012	Tuesday 21 February 2012	Monday 19 March 2012
25 May 2012	Tuesday 20 March 2012	Monday 16 April 2012
29 June 2012	Tuesday 17 April 2012	Monday 21 May 2012
27 July 2012	Tuesday 22 May 2012	Monday 18 June 2012
24 August 2012	Tuesday 19 June 2012	Monday 16 July 2012
28 September 2012	Tuesday 17 July 2012	Monday 20 August 2012
26 October 2012	Tuesday 21 August 2012	Monday 17 September 2012
7 December 2012	Tuesday 18 September 2012	Monday 29 October 2012
25 January 2013	Tuesday 30 October 2012	Monday 17 December 2012

Note: Application lodgement timeframes are to ensure that the Department of Human Services (Medicare) and the ACPA Secretariat have sufficient time to process and register applications, undertake consultation with third parties and for the ACPA to give proper consideration of applications.

ACPA Recommendations

The ACPA Secretariat will endeavour to advise applicants and surrounding pharmacists of decisions within the following timeframes:

ACPA recommends that an application be approved

If the ACPA has made a decision to recommend that an application be approved, in most cases the Secretary’s delegate in the Department of Human Services (Medicare) will be advised of the decision in writing the next working day after the meeting.

Note: If the recommendation by the ACPA is to approve the application, the relevant delegate in the Department of Human Services (Medicare) is responsible for granting the approval to supply pharmaceutical benefits. Applicants should contact the Pharmacy Program Officer in Medicare by phoning 132 290 to discuss the next steps in the process.

ACPA defers making a recommendation on an application

If the ACPA has made a decision to defer consideration of the application to the next meeting, the Secretariat will endeavour to advise the applicant of the decision within three to five working days after the meeting.

ACPA recommends that an application not be approved

If the ACPA has made a decision to recommend that an application not be approved, it will endeavour to inform the applicant of the decision, including the reason(s) for the decision and the rights of review within five to ten working days after the meeting.

Surrounding pharmacists who provided comments on an application

The ACPA will endeavour to advise the outcome of an application to any pharmacist/s who provided comments to the ACPA, within ten working days after a meeting.

Ministerial Discretion

The Minister for Health has a discretionary power to approve pharmacies in unusual circumstances where the application of the location rules results in a community being left without reasonable access to the supply of pharmaceutical benefits by an approved pharmacist, and approval of the pharmacy is in the public interest. Further information on the Minister’s discretionary power is available at the Ministerial Discretion on Pharmacy Location home page.
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