Hydroxychloroquine scripts will be further restricted following sporadic shortages in Australia driven by apparent use of the agent to combat COVID-19.

The Federal Government has announced that from 1 May the PBS listing will change from ‘unrestricted’ to Authority Required (streamlined), following earlier moves to restrict initiation of the drug to a defined set of specialties, excluding GPs.

This comes as businessman and former federal MP Clive Palmer continues his public advocacy for use of the drug with full page ads in tabloid newspapers, and as NPS MedicineWise warns there is scant evidence for its efficacy in COVID-19.

Under the new PBS rules, GPs will only be able to initiate the drug after a specialist physician has given the okay by either written or oral advice and this is lodged in a patient’s medical file.