{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/human-medicines-regulations-2012/regulation-250",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/human-medicines-regulations-2012/regulation-250.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/2012/1916",
  "legislation_title": "The Human Medicines Regulations 2012",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/human-medicines-regulations-2012",
  "path": "regulation/250",
  "kind": "regulation",
  "number": "250",
  "heading": "Exceptions to regulation 249",
  "text": "(1) This regulation makes provision for exceptions to regulation 249.\n(2) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing a pharmacy medicine which is for the purpose of being administered to human beings in the course of a business to any person carrying on such a business.\n(3) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing a pharmacy medicine to which a general sale exemption applies to any person who by virtue of that exemption may sell the pharmacy medicine by retail, or supply it in circumstances corresponding to retail sale, otherwise than by or under the supervision of a pharmacist or by a person who acts in accordance with regulation 220A or 220B (or an exemption in Chapter 3 of Part 12).\n(4) In paragraph (3) “general sale exemption” means an exemption from regulation 220 conferred by a provision of Chapter 3.\n(4A) A person may, in the course of a business consisting (wholly or partly) of manufacturing medicinal products or of selling products by way of wholesale dealing, sell by way of wholesale dealing a prescription only medicine to any person who by virtue of regulation 235A or 247 may supply or administer that medicine in accordance with a direction or protocol of the type mentioned in those regulations.\n(4B) A person may, in the course of a business consisting (wholly or partly) of manufacturing medicinal products, or of selling products by way of wholesale dealing, sell or supply by way of wholesale dealing a naloxone product that is a prescription only medicine to—\n(a) providers of drug treatment services that have arrangements as mentioned in regulation 237A(2)(a);\n(b) the medical services of His Majesty’s forces;\n(c) the bodies mentioned in regulation 237A(2)(c); and\n(d) local naloxone providers.\n(5) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing to a person specified in column 1 of Parts 1 to 3 of Schedule 17 a prescription only medicine specified in relation to that person in column 2 of Parts 1 to 3 of that Schedule.\n(6) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing to a registered optometrist a product that is a prescription only medicine by reason only that it contains one or more of the following substances—\n(a) amethocaine hydrochloride;\n(b) lidocaine hydrochloride;\n(c) oxybuprocaine hydrochloride; or\n(d) proxymetacaine hydrochloride.\n(7) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing to an additional supply optometrist a product that is a prescription only medicine by reason only that it contains thymoxamine hydrochloride.\n(8) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing to a registered dispensing optician a prescription only medicine that—\n(a) is required for use by a registered optometrist or doctor attending the optician's practice; and\n(b) contains one or more of the following substances—\n(i) amethocaine hydrochloride,\n(ii) chloramphenicol,\n(iii) cyclopentolate hydrochloride,\n(iv) fusidic acid,\n(v) lidocaine hydrochloride,\n(vi) oxybuprocaine hydrochloride,\n(vii) proxymetacaine hydrochloride, and\n(viii) tropicamide.\n(9) A person may sell by way of wholesale dealing to a registered dispensing optician a prescription only medicine that—\n(a) is required for use by the optician in the course of a professional practice as a contact lens specialist; and\n(b) contains one or more of the following substances—\n(i) lidocaine hydrochloride,\n(ii) oxybuprocaine hydrochloride, and\n(iii) proxymetacaine hydrochloride.\n(10) In this regulation—\n“additional supply optometrist” means a person who is registered as an optometrist, and against whose name particulars of the additional supply speciality have been entered in the relevant register;\n“contact lens specialist” means a person who is a registered dispensing optician and against whose name particulars of the contact lens speciality have been entered in—\n(a)the register of dispensing opticians maintained under section 7(b) of the Opticians Act 1989; or\n(b)the register of visiting dispensing opticians from relevant European States maintained under section 8B(1)(b) of that Act.",
  "extent": "E+W+S+N.I.",
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Words in reg. 250(3) inserted (7.1.2026) by The Human Medicines (Authorisation by Pharmacists and Supervision by Pharmacy Technicians) Order 2025 (S.I. 2025/1249), arts. 1(2)(5)(c), 12(13) (with reg. 12(19)(a))"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F2",
      "text": "Reg. 250(4A) inserted (6.11.2020) by The Human Medicines (Coronavirus and Influenza) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1125), regs. 1(2), 15 and reg. 250(4A) inserted (N.I.) (6.11.2020) by The Human Medicines (Coronavirus and Influenza) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 (S.R. 2020/349)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F3",
      "text": "Words in reg. 250(4A) substituted (31.3.2026) by The Human Medicines (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/381), regs. 1(2), 11(a)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F4",
      "text": "Words in reg. 250(4A) substituted (31.3.2026) by The Human Medicines (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/381), regs. 1(2), 11(b)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F5",
      "text": "Reg. 250(4B) inserted (2.12.2024) by The Human Medicines (Amendments Relating to Naloxone and Transfers of Functions) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/1125), regs. 1(2), 8"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/1916/regulation/250",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T01:24:34.993203+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}