Ontario pharmacists will soon be able to prescribe medications for 13 common ailments

Ontario pharmacists will soon be able to prescribe medications for 13 common ailments as part of an effort to ease medical wait times.

According to a statement issued by Ontario government officials Wednesday morning, you will be able to seek treatment for the following ailments at pharmacies as of Jan. 1:

• acid reflux (gastroesophageal reflux disease)
• cold sores (herpes labialis)
• dermatitis (atopic, eczema, allergic and contact)
• hay fever (allergic rhinitis)
• hemorrhoids
• impetigo
• insect bites and hives
• menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea)
• oral thrush (candidal stomatitis)
• pink eye (conjunctivitis; bacterial, allergic and viral)
• sprains and strains (musculoskeletal)
• tick bites (post-exposure prophylaxis to prevent Lyme disease)
• urinary tract infections (UTIs)

The statement said residents will be able to stop by participating pharmacies and receive prescriptions by showing their health card. People were encouraged to call their pharmacists first to confirm they are providing prescriptions.

“This service makes it more convenient to access care by removing a doctor’s office visit and will come at no extra cost to Ontarians,” officials said.

“This change builds on pharmacists’ current knowledge, skills and judgement to recommend over-the-counter medications and allows physicians to focus on the more complex health care needs of their patients.”

RELATED: Ontario pharmacists given green light to prescribe antiviral Paxlovid for COVID-19

“It’s not uncharted territory,” said Danielle Paes, chief pharmacist officer for the Canadian Pharmacists Association.

“In some of these provinces … they’ve been prescribing for well over a decade,” she said. “In many respects we’re playing a little bit of catch-up in Ontario.”

The ailments chosen were, according to Ontario government staff, medical conditions “that can be reliably self-diagnosed and managed with self-care strategies and/or minimal treatment.

Paes said expanding the role of pharmacists to include prescribing authority will help the health-care system as a whole.

“Anything that you can do to alleviate some of the pressures on our health-care workers would go a long way,” she said.

Shoppers Drug Mart, Rexall Pharmacy Group and McKesson Canada, which owns Guardian, I.D.A., Remedy’sRx and The Medicine Shoppe pharmacies, said on Wednesday that their pharmacists will participate.

But it’s not clear whether all pharmacies in Ontario will be ready to go on Jan. 1.

“Having the legislated authority to prescribe for minor ailments does not mean all pharmacists must offer or provide this service,” an information page on the Ontario College of Pharmacists website says.

“Patients are encouraged to speak to their pharmacist to find out what health-care services they offer and whether they are right for their needs,” the page says.

Earlier in December the Ontario government also moved to expand access to certain other prescription drugs, such as Paxlovid to treat COVID-19.

For further information on the initiative and other services that can be provided at pharmacies, click here.

Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report