eRx Script Exchange is the first Australia-wide platform for Prescriptions. It allows GPs, medical specialists and other prescribers to send Prescriptions with confidence, knowing that patients can have them dispensed in 99% of pharmacies around Australia.

Your doctor will print a paper prescription as normal, but now with an eRx barcode on it. At the same time, the prescription information is sent securely to eRx Script Exchange. You can then walk into any Australian pharmacy to have your medication dispensed. The pharmacist will scan your prescription barcode and this will retrieve your script information.

Prescriptions are encrypted and sent to a secure gateway, for retrieval at a patient’s pharmacy of choice. eRx is a platform designed to easily incorporate eHealth standards as they are finalised and implemented.

eRx Script Exchange is an industry initiative integrating 27 leading medical and pharmacy software vendors. eRx Script Exchange is part of the Fred IT Group.

Electronic Prescribing will provide an option for patients to receive an electronic prescription as an alternative to a paper-based prescription. The electronic prescription will be the legal document that a patient will give their pharmacy of choice access to for dispensing. eRx will be transmitting ePrescriptions in 2020.

Visit our ePrescribing page to find out more.

ePrescriptions will run in parallel with the existing paper prescription system. Options to phase out paper prescriptions are being investigated and reviewed with all appropriate parties, including, Standards Australia and DOHA.

All your personal and medication information is fully encrypted so that it is completely private and secure. Only your doctor and pharmacist can see your information, as they can now. eRx is not able to decrypt or see your information.

eRx acts like an “electronic postman” and we do not open your mail. All patient and script information is locked with three levels of encryption before it leaves the doctor’s computer and can only be opened when it arrives at the pharmacy.

eRx is the leader in electronic prescriptions and electronic medication management in Australia.
eRx has taken a unique approach to the electronic transfer of prescriptions by engaging with all the major prescribing and dispensing vendors in Australia. Through comprehensive contract agreements, users of eRx are provided with guaranteed performance levels and end user support through your vendor while using the system.

eRx’s approach means that that doctors, specialists and pharmacists need no new hardware or software. You simply need to update your existing prescribing or dispensing software.

The paper prescription continues to act as the official document, which will ensure that the prescribing and dispensing of medication can always occur.

All prescribing medical practitioners and pharmacists can register to use eRx. The registration will be provided to your nominated software vendor to allow them to activate eRx for you.

eRx is integrated as part of your clinical software and so the workflow and user interface design is determined by each Vendor Partner. Click on the Vendor pages on this website for further details on how eRx works in your chosen clinical software.

There are no sign-on fees, no licence costs, and no lock-in contracts for medical practitioners and pharmacists. There are also no transaction costs for doctors.

The eRx model is based on a pharmacy user-pays system. However, dispensing of electronic scripts will be effectively free for all pharmacies as a result of a new pricing policy announced by eRx Script Exchange in May 2010. The policy includes two major changes. eRx will lower its transaction fee to match the 15c incentive payment under the Fifth Community Pharmacy Agreement. eRx will also exchange all electronic scripts not currently funded by the incentive scheme at no cost. This includes private scripts and pharmacy initiated originals and repeats therefore ensuring that pharmacies are not out of pocket for using e-Scripts.

For further information visit 7CPA and No Cost Policy

Yes. The only people who see the transmitted data or electronic prescription are those that already see a paper prescription. – i.e. medical practitioners and pharmacy staff. All messages transmitted to and from eRx are encrypted utilising international standard security tools including existing HeSA PKI certificates. This provides security such that eRx has no ability to decrypt and read data.

eRx has passed an independent Security Assessment and Privacy Impact Assessment, which means they are accredited under the Australian Government National eAuthentication Framework around security and ensuring they meet all obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.

eRx will facilitate the communication of emergency supply and new prescription requests between prescribers and pharmacies.

For transactions between prescribers and dispensers, consent is implied in the initiator’s consultation with the patient in the same way that it is done with the paper system. If the patient does not wish their record to go through eRx they should speak to their medical practitioner and pharmacist.