What does “prescription-only” mean?

A medicine is prescription-only if it may only be dispensed with a doctor's prescription. This means that a doctor must prescribe the medicine before it can be obtained from a pharmacy.
If a medicine can be dispensed “over the counter”, it can be purchased without a prescription at a pharmacy. 

Who decides whether a medicine is prescription-only?

In Austria, the BASG determines whether a medicine should be prescription-only when it is approved. Scientific data, practical experience and legal regulations are taken into account.

Important note: Adults vs. children

Even if a medicine is available without a prescription for adults, this does not automatically mean that it can also be used for children without a prescription. Some medicines are only available without a prescription for adults – for children, on the other hand, they are only available with a doctor's prescription. The exact age limit is stated in the package leaflet.

Types of prescriptions and what they must contain:

When a medicine is prescribed, there are typically two types of prescriptions:

• A so-called “health insurance prescription” (if the costs are to be covered by the social security provider)
• A “private prescription” (if this is not the case)

Both types of prescription must contain certain minimum information:

• Name and address (place of business) of the prescribing person
• Name of the person for whom the medicine is intended
• Name of the medicine, in what form it is prescribed (e.g. tablet, syrup), quantity and strength
• For children, also the year of birth
• Date of issue and signature of the doctor

Validity of the prescription

• As a rule, a prescription is valid for a maximum of 12 months if the first dispensing takes place at the pharmacy within the first month after it is issued.
• The medicine may usually be obtained up to six times, unless otherwise stated.
• Some active ingredients (e.g. antibiotics or diazepam) may only be dispensed once. 

Special feature of health insurance prescriptions

If the prescription is a health insurance prescription – i.e. the costs are to be covered by the social insurance provider – then the following applies:

• The prescription must be obtained within one month of being issued.
• A so-called prescription fee is charged per package unit. However, if the actual retail price of the medicine is lower than the prescription fee, only the lower price is paid.
• Under certain circumstances, you may be exempt from the prescription fee.

Advertising of prescription medicines

It is not permitted to advertise prescription-only medicines to consumers.
Even if a product range contains several medicines: if one product is of this range is prescription-only, the advertising ban applies to the entire range.

Additional information: Purchasing prescription medicines