The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved amended restrictions on the prescribing of MS-2 Step on 11 July 2023. The PBS will reflect these changes, effective 1 August 2023.
Previously, medical practitioners were required to register and be certified to prescribe MS-2 Step and pharmacists had to register to dispense it. These additional regulatory steps meant only one in 10 medical practitioners can prescribe MS-2 Step and one in 10 pharmacists can dispense it.
The TGA has expanded prescribing to any healthcare practitioner with appropriate qualifications and training (e.g., nurse practitioners and authorised midwives). However, current WA legislation restricts the provision of abortions to medical practitioners only, superseding the TGA amendment.
The TGA has also removed the requirement for prescribers and dispensers to be registered with the MS-2 Step Prescribing Program – this change is applicable in WA.
For more information, see the TGA Website