Pharmacies will remain closed on Wednesday: strike in Baden-Württemberg

The doors will remain closed on Wednesday: pharmacists in Baden-Württemberg are on strike and patients there are not receiving any medication. The reasons for the protest are varied.

Anyone who needs medication from the pharmacy in the coming week could find themselves in front of closed doors. Thousands of pharmacies in Baden-Württemberg are to remain closed on Wednesday (November 22nd) due to a day of protest. However, the supply of medicines remains secure.

According to the State Pharmacists Association (LAV), emergency pharmacies will remain open. It is therefore better for patients to buy medication that can be planned before the day of the protest or on the Thursday after, as the association recommends.

In protest: Pharmacies will close on Wednesday in Baden-Württemberg

The reasons for the protest are varied. For example, the number of pharmacies in Baden-Württemberg has been falling steadily for years and is now at a new low. According to the State Chamber of Pharmacists, there were still 2,264 pharmacies in the southwest as of June 30 of this year. In 2014 there were a good 2,600; At the end of last year there were still around 2,300.

“The level of care can be described as just adequate,” said a spokesman for the LAV. However, there are sometimes long journeys to the nearest pharmacy, especially in rural areas. Emergency services have also been thinned out.

Pharmacists are sending a warning signal: many closures in recent years

But why are there closures at all? On the one hand, the location and the density of doctors there play a role. On the other hand, it is fundamentally the case that the economic situation is bad and, in many cases, no longer viable. Pharmacists would have to cope with increasing operating costs. However, the state-regulated remuneration has only been increased once in the past 20 years.

The industry is also experiencing a significant shortage of young talent. After completing their studies, pharmacists often opted for a well-paid job in industry. The LAV emphasized that pharmacies could not keep up with the salaries there.

Pharmacy strike on Wednesday: demonstration in Stuttgart

Because of a lack of economic prospects, many pharmacists are also afraid to set up their own pharmacy. “Companies that want to be sold for reasons of age, for example, cannot find any ‘buyers’ or successors because the economic prospects are not secure,” said the spokesman.

Next Wednesday, in addition to the all-day closures, the LAV is also planning a central demonstration in Stuttgart. The Bavarian colleagues also wanted to join the protests that day. There had already been a nationwide day of protest in mid-June.