This article applies to organisations who employ health practitioners in Victoria.
Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner and Worker) Regulations 2025 (Vic)
On 25 November 2025, the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner and Worker) Regulations 2025 (Vic) (the Amending Regulations) were made to amend the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Regulations 2017 (Vic) (the Regulations).
Operationally Significant Changes
The Bill inserts a range of amendments into the Regulations. The most significant changes (from an operational perspective), being:
- registered Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioners (ATSI health practitioners) may now obtain, possess, supply, and administer Schedule 2, 3, 4, and 8 poisons under instruction;
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers (ATSI health workers) may now obtain, possess, and administer Schedule 2 and 3 poisons under instruction.
Further Information
Regulation 8B has been introduced to allow an ATSI health practitioner to obtain and possess a Schedule 4 or a Schedule 8 poison in accordance with an approval under regulation 161F of the Regulations for the purposes of supply or administration in accordance with a supply or administration instruction given by a health practitioner listed in regulation 8B (e.g. registered medical practitioner, a dentist, a nurse practitioner, or an authorised midwife).
Further, new Division 2 of Chapter 4A introduces requirements relating to ATSI health practitioner supply instructions from instructing practitioners. Generally, the supply instruction must be for the medical treatment of a person other than the instructing practitioner who is under the instructing practitioner’s care and specified in the supply instruction. The instructing practitioner must have taken all reasonable steps to ensure that a therapeutic need exists for that poison, and the supply instruction must not be given merely to support the drug dependence of a person. If the poison is a drug of dependence or a Schedule 8 poison, the instructing practitioner must have taken all reasonable steps to ascertain the identity of the person for whose treatment the supply instruction is given. If a special Schedule 8 permit is required, the instructing practitioner must hold such a permit that authorises the giving of the supply instruction, and the Secretary must approve the poison under regulation 161F of the Regulations.
Failure to comply with these requirements carries a penalty of 100 penalty units (currently $20,351). For full details relating to ATSI health practitioner supply instructions, please see Division 2 of Chapter 4A of the Regulations.
An instructing practitioner means:
- a registered medical practitioner; or
- a dentist; or
- a nurse practitioner; or
- an authorised midwife; or
- an authorised optometrist; or
- an authorised podiatrist.
The Amending Regulations have introduced regulations 42A, 42B and 42C to regulate the circumstances in which an ATSI health practitioner may supply Schedule 4 and Schedule 8 poisons. Further, regulations 98C and 98D have been introduced to regulate the administration of Schedule 4 and 8 poisons by ATSI health practitioners. An ATSI health practitioner may supply or administration a Schedule 4 poison if it is in accordance with a supply or administration instruction given by an instructing practitioner and any conditions specified in the Secretary’s approval of the poison under regulation 161F of the Regulations.
The supply or administration of a Schedule 4 poison must be within 12 months after the instruction is given. An ATSI health practitioner may supply or administer a Schedule 8 poison if it is in accordance with a supply or administration instruction given by a registered medical practitioner, a dentist, a nurse practitioner or an authorised midwife and any conditions specified in the Secretary’s approval of the poison under regulation 161F of the Regulations. The supply or administration of a Schedule 8 poison must be within 6 months after the instruction is given.
Similar restrictions have been introduced in relation to the possession, sale, supply and administration of Schedule 2 and 3 poisons by ATSI health practitioners and ATSI health workers in regulations 133CA, 133CB, and 133CC.
Please click here to access the full Regulations.
