Summary
Read the full fact sheet- The Community Pharmacist Program is allowing Victorians to receive some treatments at a local pharmacy without needing to see a doctor to get a prescription first.
- You can visit a pharmacy for a resupply of the contraceptive pill, treatment for uncomplicated urinary tract infections, treatment for shingles, treatment for a flare up of mild plaque psoriasis or to access travel health and other vaccinations.
- It is free to see a pharmacist when accessing services for shingles, flare-up of mild plaque psoriasis, uncomplicated urinary tract infections and resupply of the contraceptive pill.
- Medication supplied will be charged at full price, which may be more than what you would pay if you had a prescription from a doctor. The medicine cost may also vary between pharmacies. Speak to your pharmacist to understand your options.
- For the travel health and other vaccination service, pharmacies may charge a consultation fee and the cost of any vaccines given. The cost of the consultation and the vaccines may vary between pharmacies.
- Contact the pharmacy before your visit to check arrangements for consultations.
On this page
Updates
- The Community Pharmacist Pilot has now transitioned into an ongoing Community Pharmacist Program. This means that you will be able to continue to get treatments and services in pharmacies.
- Over 2025 and 2026, additional common health conditions and well-being services will be introduced to the Community Pharmacist Program. This will bring the total to 22 services pharmacists can offer.
- You will need to pay the full medication price. Please see Costs for more details. This changed on 1 July 2025.
- The Government has completed an evaluation of the first 12 months of operation of the community pilot phase and the summary report can be found at Victorian Community Pharmacist Statewide Pilot - A summary report
About the Community Pharmacist Program
Victoria is providing more healthcare options.
The Community Pharmacist Program is allowing Victorians to receive some treatments at a local pharmacy without needing to see a doctor to get a prescription first.
This new service is benefitting many people, in particular women and people living in areas where it is hard to get a general practitioner (GP) appointment.
You can attend a pharmacy for treatment of some common health conditions:
- Treatment for shingles (aged 18 years and over)
- Treatment for flare-up of mild plaque psoriasis (aged 18 years or over)
- Request a resupply of select contraceptive pills without needing a prescription (aged 16-50 years).
- Women and gender diverse people (aged 18 - 65 years) can access treatment for uncomplicated urinary tract infections
- Pharmacist immunisers can provide some vaccinations for travel and other health vaccines including hepatitis A, hepatitis B, poliomyelitis and typhoid.
Patient safety
Pharmacies have met strict requirements to join in the Community Pharmacist Program.
As part of the program, pharmacists are required to undertake specific training to deliver these services.
The pharmacists will follow clinical management protocols to guide their decision-making. These protocols have been developed by the Victorian Department of Health in consultation with medical and pharmacy experts and are based on international best practice.
Eligibility
Participating pharmacists will ask you questions before and during your consultation to help them decide if they can treat you. Your age, your sex and the details of your condition and medical history will help the pharmacist determine whether they can treat you or whether you need a referral.
A referral is usually a letter to another healthcare provider to ask them to see you. The pharmacist will refer you to your doctor or another healthcare provider if they think that is your best option.
What to expect
- To ensure you receive safe and appropriate care, your pharmacist will meet with you in a private consulting room.
- They will explain the program and ask for your consent to be part of the program and to have your information collected.
- They will ask you questions about the health service you need to help them decided if they can treat you or if they need to refer you to a doctor.
- Following your treatment, if you provided your contact details to your pharmacist during the consultation, you will receive an SMS or an email from the Department of Health in 7 days to check how your treatment went.
If you are worried about your condition, medications, side effects or have other concerns, you should see your usual doctor.
While the pharmacist can help you with specific conditions, your doctor is still the best person to see about your overall health and any serious health conditions.
Costs
There are no charges to see the pharmacist to receive care for:
- shingles
- flare-up of mild plaque psoriasis
- urinary tract infections
- resupply of the contraceptive pill.
Medication provided under the program is not subsidised. This means you will pay the full cost of the medicine which might be more than what you pay with a doctor’s prescription.
Medication prices are set by the pharmacy and may vary between pharmacies.
Ask your pharmacist about the costs before starting the consultation.
Note that the costs of medicines supplied as part of the program will not contribute to your Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme (PBS) Safety Net threshold. If this is important to you, you may prefer to see a doctor instead of continuing with the pharmacist consultation.
Travel healthcare consultations and vaccinations
For travel healthcare consultations and vaccinations, pharmacies may charge a consultation fee, and you will be charged the cost of any vaccines given for a travel health or other vaccination consultation.
The cost of the consultation and the vaccines may vary between pharmacies.
The pharmacist will discuss all fees with you before starting the consultation and before giving any vaccines.
Find a participating pharmacy
Not all pharmacies are participating in the program.
Search the map for a participating pharmacy or speak to your local pharmacy or doctor.
Please contact the pharmacy before your visit to check arrangements for consultations.
A list of pharmacies (CSV) on the map is also available.
Booking a consultation
Some pharmacies will require a booking for a consultation with a pharmacist.
Others will allow walk-in consultations, or a combination of both.
Some will only offer the program services at set times, or on particular days.
Contact your local pharmacy or visit their website to check:
- what services are being offered under the program
- if a booking is required or if you can visit without making a booking.
Language support
Check the local signage in the pharmacy or ask them about the languages they can offer. You can also download a copy of our all services factsheets in your language.
Preparing for your consultation
Make sure you bring your Medicare card if you have one, and any concession cards you hold. It is also useful to have information about any medications you are taking for the consultation.
If you are seeking more boxes of the contraceptive pill, you will need to bring your old prescription, or some of the medication in its box. A pharmacy may have a record of this information if it is the pharmacy you use regularly.
How your information will be used
Your pharmacist will collect information about you and your consultation in the same way your doctor keeps a record of your visit when you see them. This information is kept safely in the computer systems used by the pharmacy.
With your consent the information about your treatment can be shared with your My Health Record and your regular doctor (if you have one).
You can still receive treatment even if you do not consent to share your information with your My Health Record or your doctor.
Program monitoring and evaluation
The Victorian Department of Health will continue to monitor the service provision and undertake evaluations of the program to see if this is an effective way for people to get treatment for some common medical conditions.
You will be asked to consent to sharing information with the department to allow them to monitor and evaluate the program. The department will monitor the program using general information but will not access any medical or identifying information on individual patients.
You will also be asked to consent to have your contact number and email address shared with the department to assist with evaluations.
If you do consent to this, you may be sent a survey to seek your feedback on the services you received.
If you don’t want to be part of the evaluation, you can still receive treatment as part of the program.
Your pharmacist will explain the consents to you in detail and a patient information sheet will be available to help you make an informed choice.
Complaints
Information on the complaints processes is available at the Victorian Department of Health website.
If you have a complaint, you can take the following steps to get the complaint resolved:
Step 1
Discuss your complaint with a staff member from the community pharmacy where you received the service.
Step 2
If the complaint cannot be resolved at Step 1, or the patient is dissatisfied with the outcome, they can choose one of the following ways to lodge a formal complaint with the department:
- Submit the complaint online via our online form.
- Email our Feedback and complaints team via feedback@health.vic.gov.au
- Mail: Health Feedback, GPO Box 4057, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000.
- Phone: 1300 229 075. For more information, see our Contact us page
More information
Community Pharmacist Program - Victorian Department of Health
Where to get help
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