Pharmacy Daily | Pharmacist banned for defrauding PBS

A "RECKLESS" pharmacist who "defrauded the PBS $42k for fake claims for fertility drugs", has been banned for five years.

The WA State Administrative Tribunal said David Brewster, 66, who has had previous dealings with regulators over his professional conduct, has spent seven months behind bars.

The owner of Hollywood Pharmacy in Nedlands, WA, submitted PBS claims for 83 prescriptions of Puregon, Pregnyl and Gonal-F pens for 18 patients.

The claims, totalling $42,358, included hard copies of the original prescriptions and repeats, written by fertility specialists, but for 70 of these prescriptions, the pharmacist was "reckless" in that he failed to check the medications had actually been dispensed, the WA Tribunal found.

"In fact, the fertility medications were not supplied to the relevant patients," it said.

"Additionally, the relevant patients did not require the fertility medications at the dates of supply noted on the claim forms.

"This was for reasons including pregnancy, not continuing with IVF treatment, supply predating IVF treatment, their prescriptions were not filled, they had ceased taking the medications or they had ceased ovulation induction treatment," Tribunal has found.