Prescriptions for antimicrobial medicines must be dispensed within five days of being issued, under the EU veterinary medicines regulations that will be implemented at the end of January 2022.
However, the validity period for prescriptions of other veterinary medicines has yet to be confirmed, according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).
Impending new EU medicines regulations will restrict the use of veterinary medicines, antibiotics and antimicrobials in food-producing animals, in the interest of public health and animal health and welfare.
In response to a query, the DAFM told Agriland that:
“Existing national legislation provides that all prescriptions for veterinary medicines can be valid for up to 12 months before they are dispensed.
“Article 105(10) of EU Regulation 2019/6 provides that prescriptions for antimicrobial medicines must be dispensed within five days of being issued.
“In relation to the validity period for prescriptions of other veterinary medicines, DAFM is consulting with the Veterinary Council of Ireland and other stakeholders on this issue.”
Veterinary medicines – minister response?
The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine recently concluded its report relating to the new EU medicines regulations.
In it, 10 recommendations were made regarding implementation in Ireland, of these new regulations, including new prescription rules to the sale and supply of anti-parasitics.
Agriland asked the DAFM if the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue would be responding officially to these recommendations.
A response from the DAFM stated that the minister addressed the Joint Oireachtas Committee report in a ‘topical issue debate in the Dáil on July 15’.
“The minister and the DAFM have clarified that advice received from the attorney general’s office in relation to the prescribing of anti-parasitic medicines confirm the position communicated to stakeholders over the past two years – only registered veterinary practitioners are legally permitted to issue prescriptions for prescription-only medicines (POM) in Ireland.”
The DAFM added that it is “critically important to emphasise that all existing suppliers of veterinary medicines will continue to be permitted to sell them.
“However, from January 28, 2022, a prescription issued by a registered veterinary practitioner will first be required in order to supply anti-parasitic veterinary medicines.”
‘A bigger threat than cancer’
The DAFM said: “If not addressed, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) may result in up to 10 million human deaths by 2050 making it a bigger threat to human life than cancer.
“In light of the threat AMR poses to human and animal health, EU Regulation 2019/6 specifically provides for a heightened level of oversight related to the prescribing and use of antimicrobial medicines.”