All pharmacists in B.C. receive the Scope of Practice Round-up produced by the BC Pharmacy Association, highlighting important changes to the profession's scope. Updates will be distributed quarterly.
Past editions can be found at bcpharmacy.ca/scope-practice-round.
MedSask Updates
Have you accessed medSask guidelines and PARs recently? If not, here are some of the recent changes to further align with B.C. MACS scope:
- Significant updates to Guideline and PAR for Contraception, no longer an algorithm (November 2025) New!
- Guideline update for Dandruff (August 2025)
- Guideline update for Vulvovaginal Candidiasis (June 2025)
- Guideline, algorithm and PAR for Acne have been updated to include information on all topical therapies (April 2025)
- Guideline added for Atopic Dermatitis (March 2025)
FAQ - Can a BC Pharmacist prescribe for the first episode of an uncomplicated urinary tract infection?
Yes, BC pharmacists are able to prescribe for a patient presenting with symptoms consistent with an uncomplicated urinary tract infection (uUTI), whether it is the patient's first episode, or not.
While some clinical resources suggest that a first episode of a uUTI is a reason to refer a patient to another healthcare provider, it is not a requirement for BC pharmacists to follow a specific resource when providing care to patients. Pharmacists should use their clinical judgement to determine if a referral to another healthcare provider is necessary.
This also applies to treatment recommendations, particularly antimicrobials. While some clinical resources recommend sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim as a second line option for uUTI, it is not recommended as empiric therapy in BC as resistance rates exceed 20%.
Additional resources for antimicrobial treatment options:
Pharmacists are accessible primary health care professionals who are well positioned to take on a larger role in the management of uncomplicated urinary tract infections.
Full list of BCPhA FAQs - https://www.bcpharmacy.ca/macs-portal/FAQs
All prescribed alternatives clients must transition to witnessed dosing by Dec. 30, 2025
New policy and payments for witnessed prescribed alternatives
All clients who have a prescribed alternatives (PA) prescription will be required to transition to witnessed dosing by Dec. 30, 2025, through a new policy direction released by the Ministry of Health, with the following limited exemptions for clients in exceptional circumstances:
- Clients from rural, remote and Indigenous communities who do not have routine access to a pharmacy
- Clients who have achieved clinical stability with employment or educational obligations, who may be permitted unwitnessed doses during work or school hours
- Clients titrating onto Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT)
Resources
- Access to Prescribed Alternatives in British Columbia: Policy Direction
- BCCSU Clinical Bulletin for Prescribed Alternatives
- BCCSU 24/7 Addiction Medicine line for case-based support at (778) 945-7619
Prescribed alternative witness fees for pharmacies
Pharmacies can anticipate a new payment system to be implemented for PA dose witnessing fees, with payments to begin in spring 2026. There will be retroactive payment for witnessed doses of PA recorded in PharmaNet using the appropriate intervention code "VS" from June 18, 2025, onwards.
PharmaCare will pay a maximum number of daily witness fees per patient, per day as detailed on the PharmaCare PA drug list. Witnessed doses must include the PharmaNet intervention code "VS" and claims must be submitted on the same day of the dispense/witness.
This fee is exclusive to PA and not OAT. Fees will range from $4 to $10. For details see PharmaCare Prescribed alternatives
Dispensing fee increases from $10 to $11; decrease in max daily dispensing fees per day
In December 2025, the Ministry of Health announced PharmaCare will increase the maximum amount that PharmaCare will pay per dispense, from $10 to $11 starting on Jan. 2, 2026.
In an effort to combat ongoing reports of cash incentives given to patients who receive daily dispenses of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) and other medications, PharmaCare announced it is reducing the maximum number of dispensing fees PharmaCare will pay per day, from three (3) to two (2) for clients receiving daily dispensing. This will also begin on Jan. 2, 2026.
PharmaCare will pay one (1) dispensing fee per patient, per drug (DIN), per day—to a maximum of two (2) dispensing fees per patient, per day.
College of Pharmacists webinars on medication incident reporting
The College of Pharmacists will have a total of four webinars covering CIRCL before the implementation date of June 1, 2026.
The first webinar was hosted on Sept. 18, 2025 and provided an overview of the CIRCL framework, ISMP Canada’s role in national medication safety initiatives, an overview of national databases, and how anonymous reporting contributes to shared learning and safety improvements.
The second webinar was hosted on Nov. 20, 2025 and guides pharmacy professionals through the essential components of CIRCL implementation, from selecting a reporting platform to building a culture of continuous improvement.
There will be additional webinars in March and April 2026. Webinar recordings are available at bcpharmacists.org/CIRCL-Webinars.
Continuous Improvement, Reporting, Collaborating, and Learning (CIRCL): info on medication incident reporting requirements
In April 2025, the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia approved bylaws and amendments to implement medication incident reporting. These changes established responsibilities for pharmacies to include continuous quality improvement programs, including a process for reporting, documenting, analyzing, following-up on and learning from medication incidents and near misses.
The College is calling the program Continuous Improvement, Reporting, Collaborating, and Learning (CIRCL), and once implemented, B.C. will become the ninth province in Canada to have this reporting requirement in place within pharmacies. The requirements take effect on June 1, 2026.
By June 1, 2026, pharmacy managers should have selected a reporting platform that would allow pharmacy staff to report de-identified medication incidents or near misses, for the information to be collected by the National Incident Data Repository (NIDR) for community pharmacies. Read More
Ministry of Health and UBC publish report on impact of free contraceptives program
Throughout the past year, the Ministry of Health partnered with researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC) to review contraceptive prescribing by pharmacists to examine the impact of PharmaCare’s free contraception initiative.
Over the first 15 months of the program, the use of long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs) increased by 49 per cent and the use of prescription contraception increased by 10 per cent. Use increased across all age groups, with the largest increase among 20 to 29 year olds.
Pharmacist survey: building community knowledge about PharmaCare
The PharmaCare Community Outreach Survey is open from Nov. 13, 2025, to Jan. 2, 2026, to solicit pharmacist experience and ideas for improving public knowledge about PharmaCare.
The BC PharmaCare communications team is launching a project to help community organizations, from libraries to refugee settlement agencies, share information about PharmaCare with the people they serve.
You can email pharmacareinfo@gov.bc.ca if you'd rather share your thoughts by email or to set up a call.