Wiesbaden (dpa/lhe) – With a view to the protest by the pharmacies this Wednesday (June 14), Hesse’s Prime Minister Boris Rhein is calling for a strategy for the secure supply of medicines. “I could not have imagined a few years ago that parents could not even get the right cough syrup for their children in the past few months,” said the CDU politician to the German Press Agency in Wiesbaden. “It’s about the well-being and health of the patients.”
Nevertheless, the federal government does not conduct a dialogue with the most important actors. For months he has been asking Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) to hold a drug summit, Rhein added. “The federal government, the states, pharmacies and the pharmaceutical industry belong at one table.”
According to Rhein, the pharmacies in particular bridge the worst supply bottlenecks with commitment, flexibility and personal proximity to the patients. Their considerable additional expense in the event of high inflation and expensive energy must be appropriately remunerated. The state government asked the federal government to do this on May 12, together with other states in the Bundesrat. But Lauterbach rejects this. “I therefore have a lot of understanding for the mood in the pharmacist community,” explained Rhein.
This Wednesday, many people in Hesse are likely to stand in front of closed pharmacies. Almost all pharmacies in the state will probably take part in a nationwide protest day, as the Hessian Pharmacist Association has announced. On this day, the supply of medicines will only be provided via emergency pharmacies. In their own words, the pharmacists want to draw attention to the dwindling number of pharmacies – due to excessive bureaucracy, underfunding and a lack of appreciation from the federal government. There will be a demonstration in Wiesbaden on Wednesday.
Lauterbach had recently rejected demands from the pharmacist associations for more fees. “The statutory health insurance companies are complaining about financial problems, the finance minister is cutting the funds. Under these circumstances, there is currently no room for higher fees for pharmacists,” said the Federal Health Minister of the “Bild am Sonntag”.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:230613-99-33499/2
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