PBS Safety Net Early Supply Rules

What is the effect of the PBS Safety Net early supply rule?

For specified PBS medicines, a prescription that is supplied within less than the specified interval after a previous supply of any brand of the same or an equivalent medicine will fall outside Safety Net. For that supply:

  • the patient contribution will not count towards the Safety Net threshold

  • the PBS co-payment cannot be discounted by the pharmacist

  • if the Safety Net threshold has been reached, the usual patient payment applies - not the reduced Safety Net amount.

Why is the Safety Net early supply rule needed?

Safety Net entitlements can act as an incentive for repeat prescriptions to be used to obtain medicines earlier than they are needed. The rule encourages responsible use of the PBS by removing Safety Net benefits for additional or early supplies of some medicines.

Patients achieve the best value for PBS contributions in the long run by complying with entitlements.

Early supply rules support Quality Use of PBS Medicines by discouraging stockpiling, reducing wastage and reducing the quantity of unused medicines in the community. Proper use of entitlements results in better use of PBS funding.

Source:https://www.pbs.gov.au/info/general/pbs-safety-net-pharmacist

Safety Net Early Supply Rules in Fred Dispense

The 20 Day Safety Net Rule has been in existence for some time, With the introduction of 60 Day Supply in 2023, there was a need to create a 50 Day Safety Net Rule.

Now, if either of the below occur, then the script becomes a Safety Net Consequence Script (SNQ).

  • SN20DR script is dispensed within 20 clear days

  • SN50DR script is dispensed within 50 clear days

This means that the prescription will not count towards the patient’s Safety Net total; or, if the patient has already reached their Safety Net, the script will be re-priced at the pre-entitlement safety net price. For example, a patient with a CN or Concession Safety Net Entitlement would find the script re-priced at the General PBS price.

Indicators in Fred Dispense

Fred Dispense has multiple indicators to show when a script is affected by the Safety Net 20 Day Rule (SN20DR) or Safety Net 50 Day Rule (SN20DR).

  • When you select a drug that falls under the Safety Net 20 or 50 Day Rules, the term SN20DR or SN50DR will display in blue in the Drug Details box on the right hand side of the Fred Dispense screen.

  • After the pharmacist's initials have been entered to complete the dispensing, SN20DR or SN50DR can also been seen in blue towards the bottom right hand side of the screen, above the claim serial number.

  • When a drug is selected that will be an SNQ item, the standard immediate supply warning will display to notify you that the script being dispensed is within 20 (or 50) clear days of another dispensing for the same item. The immediate supply warning displays in red, and the title at the top of the warning is SN20DR Item (or SN50DR Item).

  • In the Drug Details box, *SNQ* will display to show that the item has Safety Net consequence. Once the pharmacist’s initials have been entered, *SNQ* is also displayed at the bottom right corner of the screen, above the claim serial number.

  • On the Patient History screen, a hyphen (–) is displayed on the right side, next to the pharmacist initials. This flag also shows that the script is an SNQ script.

  • In the circumstance where a patient has not yet reached the safety net limit, and a script is dispensed that is SNQ, the script will still display on the patient’s safety net report. The script will be recorded with no safety net value and the term SN20DR or SN50DR will display next to the safety net value column.