Pharmacists can now supply nicotine vapes without a prescription in most Australian states under new laws that have outraged the Pharmacy Guild of Australia.

From Tuesday, pharmacists in all states but Tasmania and WA can sell vapes with a nicotine concentration of 20mg/mL or less without a prescription to adults aged 18 or older, provided they are supplied in plain packaging and are restricted to tobacco, menthol and mint flavours.

The change followed a snap decision by the Federal Government in July to reclassify unregulated nicotine vapes as S3 rather than S4 medications after giving in to the Greens’ demands.

Despite pharmacists’ appetite for taking on GP roles, the guild raged that the change would turn pharmacies into “vape retailers and vape garbage collectors”, while major pharmacy groups said they would be reluctant to stock vapes.