86DPower of approved suppliers to record and retain medicare numbers and expiry dates

#### 86D Power of approved suppliers to record and retain medicare numbers and expiry dates Approved supplier may record and retain medicare numbers and expiry dates supplied by or on behalf of patients (1) If: (a) an approved supplier is provided with a medicare number as a number applicable to a person (whether with or without the expiry date in relation to that number) either: (i) as a result of a request under section 86B or 86C; or (ii) to facilitate the supply of pharmaceutical benefits at a later time or times; and (b) the approved supplier is satisfied that the person providing the number, or number and date, is: (i) the person in respect of whom the number was provided; or (ii) the legal guardian of that person; or (iii) another person who, in accordance with a determination made by the Minister under subsection (5), is capable of giving an authorisation under this subsection; the approved supplier may, with the authorisation of the person providing the number, or number and date, undertake the permitted recording and retention activities in relation to that number, or number and date. Supplier may record and retain medicare numbers and expiry dates supplied by PBS prescribers in respect of communicated prescriptions (2) If: (a) a prescription for the supply of a pharmaceutical benefit is communicated to an approved supplier in circumstances set out in regulations made for the purposes of paragraph 89(a); and (b) at the time the prescription is communicated, the PBS prescriber communicating the prescription informs the approved supplier of a medicare number as a number applicable to the person to whom the prescription relates (whether with or without the expiry date in relation to that number); the approved supplier may undertake the permitted recording and retention activities in relation to that number, or number and date. > Note: An approved supplier can only be informed of a medicare number under this section with the authority of the person whose number it is, or of another person on that person’s behalf (see subsection 88(3B)). Persons not obliged to authorise recording and retention of particulars (3) Nothing in this section implies that a person is under any obligation to authorise an approved supplier to undertake the permitted recording and retention activities in respect of a medicare number, or of a medicare number and the expiry date in relation to such a number, provided as a result of a request under section 86B or 86C. Approved supplier responsible for storage and security (4) An approved supplier who, under this section, records and retains medicare numbers, or medicare numbers and expiry dates in relation to those numbers, in the approved supplier’s records must ensure: (a) that the record of those numbers, or numbers and dates, is protected, by such security safeguards as it is reasonable in the circumstances to take, against loss, against unauthorised access, use, modification or disclosure, and against other misuse; and (b) if it is necessary for access to the record of those numbers, or numbers and dates, to be given to a person in connection with the provision of services to the approved supplier—that everything reasonably within the power of the approved supplier is done to prevent unauthorised use or disclosure of information contained in that record. Determinations are legislative instruments (5) For the purposes of subsection (1), the Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine a person to be capable of giving an authorisation. Permitted recording and retention activities (6) In this section: > permitted recording and retention activities, in relation to a medicare number provided to an approved supplier under subsection (1) or (2) as a number applicable to a person (whether with or without an expiry date in relation to that number), are: (a) to record and retain that number, or that number and date, in the approved supplier’s records in relation to that person; or (b) if the approved supplier has already recorded and retained either or both of those particulars in relation to that person by virtue of a previous operation of this section—to check the accuracy and completeness of the recorded particulars in respect of that person and, if the recorded particulars are inaccurate or incomplete, to modify those particulars appropriately.