Only time I have had to have a monthly supply was when there was a shortage of statins and rather than the usual 90 days tub I got a 30 day blister pack for a month then 2 repeats then it was back to the 90 day supply.
I checked into this a little more, it's based around PHARMAC rules. The primary reason is to help with compliance, as if people collect medications regularly they're most likely taking them - a lot of people don't. Next is avoid wastage, to avoid expensive medication being thrown away. Some medications that we pay $5 or (or nothing) can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, which adds up.
Pharmacies get dispensing fees each time you collect a prescription, so if you collect it all at once they get paid less, so they're probably not motivated to let you do this.
Reasons to pick them up all at once are: holiday, moving away from the area, limited physical mobility, and if you live/work more than 30 minutes away by your normal form of transport.
Sred: Only time I have had to have a monthly supply was when there was a shortage of statins and rather than the usual 90 days tub I got a 30 day blister pack for a month then 2 repeats then it was back to the 90 day supply.
Shortage. I get 3 types each 3 months, Ive had them all at once, or statins were repeats due to shortage, last two times Metoprolol was repeats due to shortage. So at least for those meds its not a legal or waste issue, its a supply issue
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