This article applies to organisations that employ paramedics.
Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Paramedic Practitioners) Act 2025 (Vic)
On 12 November 2025, the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Paramedic Practitioners) Act 2025 (Vic) (the Amending Act) commenced and amended the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic) (the Act).
What’s changed?
The key changes introduced by the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Paramedic Practitioners) Act 2025 (Vic) establish paramedic practitioners as a class of registered paramedics under the Act, and authorise paramedic practitioners to obtain, possess, use, sell and supply certain substances.
Further Information
Paramedic practitioners
The Act inserts two new definitions into section 4(1) of the Act:
- paramedic practitioner, which means a registered paramedic who has completed a prescribed postgraduate qualification and satisfies the prescribed experience requirements (if any); and
- registered paramedic, which means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the paramedicine profession (other than as a student).
Section 13(1) of the Act has been amended to authorise a paramedic practitioner to obtain, possess, use, sell or supply any Schedule 2, 3, 4 or 8 poisons approved by the Minister in the practice of their profession as a paramedic practitioner. Section 14 of the Act has been amended to provide however, where the Paramedicine Board of Australia has imposed a condition, limitation or restriction prohibiting the obtaining, possession, use, sale or supply of a Schedule 2, 3, 4 or 8 poison in relation to the practice of a registered paramedic, that registered paramedic will be taken not to be authorised to obtain, possess, use, sell or supply the poison to which the condition, limitation or restriction relates.
The Amending Act has also made amendments to expand existing provisions of the Act to confer other powers and obligations on paramedic practitioners. Amendments to section 30C, for example, allow paramedic practitioners to access, use and disclose information on the monitored poisons database for specified purposes. Further, section 30GA has been inserted into the Act to require a paramedic practitioner to take all reasonable steps to check the monitored poisons database for any records or information in relation to a person before prescribing or supplying a monitored supply poison. Failure to comply with this obligation will result in a penalty of 100 penalty units (currently $20,351).
Paramedic practitioners will also now be required to notify the Secretary of a reportable drug event under section 32A of the Act.
Schedule 8 permits
Paramedic practitioners are required to apply for a permit under section 34(1) of the Act, if the practitioner considers it necessary to administer, supply or prescribe a Schedule 8 poison to or for one of their patients who is a drug-dependent person, or if they consider it necessary to administer a Schedule 8 poison for a continuous period of more than 8 weeks to a patient who is not drug-dependent. Failure to do so will result in a penalty of up to 100 penalty units (currently $20,351), as specified under the amended sections 34B and 34C of the Act.
Section 35 has been amended to provide that it is an offence for paramedic practitioners to administer, supply or prescribe a Schedule 8 poison beyond the period or quantity specified in a Schedule 8 permit. Failure to adhere to this requirement will result in a penalty of up to 100 penalty units (currently $20,351).
What you should do
Organisations should train relevant staff on the new authorisations and restrictions placed on paramedic practitioners, updating or developing policies and procedures for handling scheduled poisons, and implementing controls to ensure required checks of the monitored poisons database and Schedule 8 permit processes are followed.
