Your medicines in a bushfire, flood or cyclone

What medicines should go in my emergency kit?

The Australian Red Cross suggests packing 14 days of medicines and prescriptions for everyone in your household. Put them with the rest of your emergency kit, in a bag you can carry if you have to leave in a hurry.

• Your medicines, in their packs, with any equipment that goes with them: inhalers and spacers, glucose meters and test strips, adrenaline injectors.
• A list of everything you take, with each medicine’s name, strength and dose, and your doctor’s and pharmacy’s phone numbers.
• Your scripts. eScripts are on your phone and paper scripts can be lost, so ask your doctor for eScripts if you don’t use them already. Read how eScripts and the Active Script List work.
• Your Medicare and concession cards, or photos of them.

Keep the kit somewhere dry and easy to reach, and check it at least once a year for medicines that have expired or changed. The NDSS suggests a waterproof kit for diabetes supplies, checked every 3 months.

My Health Record helps too. Pharmacists can upload prescription and dispense records to it, so if you’re away from home without your list, a doctor or pharmacist may be able to see what you take.

How do I keep insulin cool if the power goes out?

The NDSS advice for insulin:

• Keep it as cool as you can, in a cooler bag with four re-freezable cool packs or a cooling wallet.
• Wrap ice packs in a towel so the insulin doesn’t freeze. Don’t use insulin that has frozen.
• Once opened, insulin can be kept at room temperature (15 to 25 degrees) for up to 28 days, out of direct sunlight.

For other medicines kept in the fridge, ask your pharmacist how long they last out of it.

What if I run out of medicine and can’t get a script?

Try these in order.

1. See your doctor by telehealth. They can send an eScript to your phone or to a pharmacy.
2. Ask a pharmacist about an owing prescription. The pharmacist confirms your medicine with your doctor and supplies it, and the doctor sends the script to the pharmacy afterwards.
3. Ask for an emergency supply. In most states and territories a pharmacist can give you 3 days’ supply of most medicines without a script. The rules are set by each state. In WA, for example, you must already be on the medicine, it must be impractical to get a script in time, and stopping must be likely to cause harm; strong opioids and other Schedule 8 medicines are excluded.
4. Ask about Continued Dispensing. If your doctor can’t be reached, a pharmacist can supply a full PBS quantity of an eligible medicine at the usual PBS price. You must have been supplied it on a PBS script in the last three months, your treatment must be stable, and you can only get one Continued Dispensing supply in 12 months. Eligible medicines are mostly for long-term conditions such as asthma and other lung conditions, diabetes, high cholesterol and heart disease, along with the contraceptive pill and HIV medicines.

It doesn’t have to be your usual pharmacist. To find one that’s open, use Near me or see 24-hour pharmacies in Australia.

What changes after a disaster?

After a major bushfire, flood or cyclone, the government can widen Continued Dispensing for people in the affected areas, for a limited time. From 10 December 2025 to 31 January 2026, for example, people affected by bushfires in six NSW local government areas could get most medicines on the PBS General Schedule without a script.

If your medicines were lost or damaged, a pharmacist can supply your PBS repeat early. If you’ve lost your Medicare, DVA or concession card, call Services Australia on 132 011, or ask the pharmacist to look up your details for you.

If you’re unsure what to do about a medicine, call healthdirect on 1800 022 222, where registered nurses answer 24 hours a day (Nurse-on-Call in Victoria). If someone’s life is in danger, call 000.