New South Wales Consolidated Acts

POISONS AND THERAPEUTIC GOODS ACT 1966 - SECT 8

8 Poisons List

(1) The proclamation of the Poisons List in force under this section immediately before the commencement of Schedule 2 to the Poisons (Amendment) Act 1987 continues in force at the commencement as the proclamation of the Poisons List for the purposes of this Act.

(2) The Poisons List shall contain 9 Schedules and the substances included in the list shall be classified as follows--

Substances which are of such extreme danger to life as to warrant their being supplied only by medical practitioners, nurse practitioners authorised under section 17A, midwife practitioners authorised under that section, pharmacists, dentists, veterinary practitioners or persons licensed under Part 3.

Substances which are dangerous to life if misused or carelessly handled, but which should be available to the public for therapeutic use or other purposes without undue restriction.

Substances which are for therapeutic use and--

(i) about which personal advice may be required by the user in respect of their dosage, frequency of administration and general toxicity,

(ii) with which excessive unsupervised medication is unlikely, or

(iii) which may be required for use urgently so that their supply only on the prescription of a medical practitioner or veterinary practitioner would be likely to cause hardship.

Substances which in the public interest should be supplied only upon the written prescription of a medical practitioner, nurse practitioner authorised to prescribe the substance under section 17A, midwife practitioner authorised to prescribe the substance under that section, dentist, optometrist authorised to prescribe the substance under section 17B, podiatrist authorised to prescribe the substance under section 17C or veterinary practitioner.

Poisonous substances of a dangerous nature commonly used for domestic purposes which should be readily available to the public but which require caution in their handling, use and storage.

Substances which should be readily available to the public for agricultural, pastoral, horticultural, veterinary, photographic or industrial purposes or for the destruction of pests.

Substances of exceptional danger which require special precautions in their manufacture or use.

Substances which are addiction producing or potentially addiction producing.

Substances which are specified in Schedule 9 of the current Poisons Standard (within the meaning of Part 6-3 of the Commonwealth Act).

Note : Substances in Schedule 9 are substances which may be abused or misused, the manufacture, possession, sale or use of which should be prohibited by law except when required for medical or scientific research, or for analytical, teaching or training purposes with the approval of Commonwealth or State or Territory Health Authorities. The Poisons Standard is available in electronic form, free of cost, at www.comlaw.gov.au.

(6) The Poisons List may be amended or replaced by proclamation made on the recommendation of the Minister and published on the NSW legislation website.

(7) An amendment of the Poisons List may be made by applying, adopting or incorporating, with or without modification, provisions of the current Poisons Standard (within the meaning of Part 6-3 of the Commonwealth Act) or any other published standard, as in force at a particular time or as in force from time to time.

Editorial note : See the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods (Poisons List) Proclamation 2016 and the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 of the Commonwealth.