How Early Can I Order My Repeat Medication? | Hey Pharmacist (2024)

FAQs

How Early Can I Order My Repeat Medication? | Hey Pharmacist? ›

If you have opted to have your medication delivered directly to your door, then it is recommended that you order your repeat prescription 7 days before. However, if you choose to collect your medication from your local pharmacy then the process is much faster, taking approximately 3 days.

But that is under their discretion. How soon can you order an NHS repeat prescription? It is recommended that you reorder your repeat prescriptions up to 7 days before it is due to run out to allow them to be processed on time, with many GP surgeries not accepting prescription requests more than 7 days before.

It refers to the number of days you may need to wait between refills of 30-day prescriptions that are considered controlled substances. If you have a medication that follows the 28-day rule on a 30-day supply, it means you can get a refill no earlier than 2 days before the 30 days are up.

Where no early supply period is specified, the 'immediate supply' period is based on the number of repeats in the PBS listing: 20 days for items listed with more than four repeats and 4 days for eye preparations and items with up to four repeats.

While there are regulations around early prescriptions, pharmacists have discretion to fill them early. For example, a 30-day repeat prescription may be collected after 20 days if the dispensing pharmacist believes there is sufficient reason.

Typically each supply will last 1 month. For chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes, it is common to get up to 5 repeats on your prescription, meaning the script will provide up to 6 months supply of your medication before you need to go back to the doctor for a new script.

At regular intervals (every 3, 6 or 12 months is common), your GP will reauthorise the prescription.

If you try to fill a prescription before reaching your refill allowance, your claim will be rejected as “refill too soon”. There are some situations, however, when an override will be granted, such as in the event of a natural disaster, a stolen prescription, active military duty, travel or vacation.

The 30 day count begins the day you pick it up at pharmacy. Remember This. Often, the date on the printed label “filled date” is not the date you picked up the prescription bottle.

Are repeat prescriptions every 28 days? ›

If you are being prescribed a “repeat medicine” your doctor will now start to prescribe enough of each medicine to last you for 28 days. For example, if you are taking 2 tablets a day you will receive 56 tablets, 3 tablets a day 84 tablets, 4 tablets a day 112 tablets etc. Are there any exceptions?

Medicine supply

While eligible people can now obtain double their medicine on a single prescription, this will last them for a longer period of time, meaning overall demand for medicines will stay the same.

The 60-day dispensing policy means that patients will be able to receive twice the medication on a single prescription where their prescriber considers that it is clinically appropriate to do so. If stock is low or has a short expiry date, patients should not be negatively impacted.

If you take medicine regularly, you'll usually have a repeat prescription. This means you can order your medicine when you need it, without having to see a GP every time. You might be able to ask your pharmacy directly for your medicine if your GP has set this up (repeat dispensing).

Your medication

If you need regular medication for a stable long-term health condition, your GP may prescribe a maximum supply of three months.

Your prescription will then usually be sent to your pharmacy electronically. If this isn't the case, you can take the prescription to a pharmacy and have the pharmacist fill it out. If your doctor is happy for you to take that medication on a regular basis, they'll set up a repeat prescription.

You may not be able to order your prescription items if: You need a medicine review by your GP practice. It is too early to order your medicine. It is an acute (short-term) or one-off prescription.

There is not an automatic right to repeat medication, even if you have agreed a particular course of medication with your doctor, we are still responsible for ensuring that you are using the medication properly and that it is still necessary to treat your condition.

Why can I not have more than 1 month supply of my prescription at a time? The practice will only prescribe a months supply of medication at a time. This is to prevent wastage. The practice has to dispose of thousands of unused items every year.