This prescription is only valid for a few days. You have to run to the pharmacy quickly, otherwise it will be gone
In most cases, the prescription is valid for 30 days. Sometimes, however, the time is much shorter and the prescription needs to be filled very quickly. In what situations should you hurry up?
After the doctor writes the prescription, we have a certain time to fill it. However, it is not the same in every case. Drug prescriptions have a predetermined expiration date. Although it is usually 30 days, there are exceptions that the patient must remember. Otherwise, his prescription may be lost and he will no longer be able to purchase his medications.
A prescription for antibiotics is only valid for a few days
The deadline for fulfilling a given prescription is strictly defined by law. These rigid deadlines result from the Pharmaceutical Law Act of September 6, 2001 and the Regulation of the Minister of Health of December 6, 2019 amending the regulation on prescriptions. When it comes to the time it takes to fill a prescription, the key factors are the date it was issued and what medications are prescribed on it.
Patients who have been prescribed antibiotics in the form of preparations for internal and parenteral use have the least time to fill the prescription – only a few days. They must do this within only 7 days – once this deadline has passed, they will not be able to purchase the antibiotic. Please also remember that the antibiotic prescription contains the date of issue, but there is no information that it must be filled within 7 days. Therefore, the patient must always keep this in mind when receiving a prescription for an antibiotic from a doctor.
How important are prescriptions? Time to implement
“Most often, the validity of a prescription is 30 days from the date of its issuance or from the designated fulfillment date – if one is specified on the prescription. However, there are exceptions to this rule and in the case of some drugs, the prescription fulfillment period may be shorter (e.g. for antibiotics) or longer (e.g. for immunological preparations),” informs the National Health Fund.
The prescription for immunological preparations will be valid for 120 days. The remaining prescriptions are valid for 30 days. The prescription may also be valid for a year (365 days) – it is given to chronically ill patients who regularly receive certain medications. However, patients can purchase a supply of the drug for 120 days at a time (and not for the entire year). It is also worth knowing whether one prescription can be filled in different pharmacies.
How to check how long a prescription is valid?
It should also be remembered that if the doctor did not write the fulfillment date (“fulfillment date from…”) on the prescription, the time that the patient has to buy the prescription starts from the moment it is issued by the specialist. If, on the other hand, the doctor has marked a later fulfillment date, the patient will see it on the prescription and will be able to purchase the medicine from that date.
You can find your prescription in your Online Patient Account (in the “Prescriptions” tab). It contains the date the prescription was issued and sometimes also the date it was filled. If the field regarding the fulfillment date has not been completed by the doctor, it means that the prescription is valid for 30 days from the date of issue (however, there are exceptions to this mentioned above).
