There are too many pharmacies in Latvia; offers new restrictions / Article / LSM.lv

According to the data of the State Agency of Medicines, there were 766 pharmacies in Latvia in 2019, but in order to ensure an efficient system, there should be 480 pharmacies or 37% less compared to the current number of pharmacies, the Ministry of Health informed. It revised the geographical and demographic criteria for the location of pharmacies and referred the new restrictions to the government.

The Ministry of Agriculture notes that according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the number of pharmacists per 100,000 inhabitants in Latvia corresponds to the OECD average, while the number of pharmacies per 100,000 inhabitants is 44% higher than the OECD average.

“This indicates that there is a large number of pharmacies in Latvia with a smaller number of pharmacists and, consequently, the availability of pharmacies, creating a risk for the provision of quality pharmaceutical care to the population,” the ministry explained.

As vertical and horizontal integration continues to develop, namely through an increase in the number of pharmacies owned by wholesalers, dominance of individual market participants is observed and increasing impact.

The number of pharmacies is increasing in the chains of pharmacies owned by wholesalers, as the number of individual pharmacies or smaller pharmacy networks is decreasing. As a result, competition from pharmacies is declining, with the number of pharmacies remaining broadly unchanged and even increasing each year per 100,000 inhabitants. Therefore, the aim of the MoD, reviewing the criteria for the location of pharmacies, is:

• to promote the availability of quality pharmaceutical care for the widest possible population;
• to promote the efficient operation of pharmacies;
• to ensure an even and more rational distribution of pharmacies;
• to reduce the risk that individual pharmacies willing to work are included in large pharmacy networks;
• to prevent the practice of market participants gaining advantages in the pursuit of their commercial interests through manipulative activities.

Work on the revision of pharmacy criteria was started last year, as a result of which amendments have been made to the regulations of the Cabinet of Ministers.

It is planned that in future settlements with a population not exceeding 4,000, one pharmacy will be able to be located to ensure efficient pharmaceutical care and operation of a pharmacy.

The current system allows two pharmacies to operate in such a place, which has not been proven in practice as a pro-competitive system for improving the quality of pharmaceutical care. The change in the system would facilitate the ability of young pharmacists to open their own pharmacies in rural areas and encourage more market participants and competition in the interests of patients, the Ministry of Health estimated.

Also, in order to open or locate a pharmacy in another place, it must not be located closer than 500 meters from an existing pharmacy.

This will ensure that pharmacies are not concentrated in one place. There are exceptions, for example, for pharmacies owned by individual pharmacists – they will not have to comply with the 500-meter condition when relocating a pharmacy. Also, for the convenience of the population, in order to have access to pharmaceutical care, in large shopping centers, it will be possible to open a pharmacy even if there is another pharmacy outside the center closer than 500 meters.

It is planned to change the regulations also with regard to hospital territories – a pharmacy may be opened in those territories as well, if there is another pharmacy closer than 500 meters outside the hospital.

In turn, in order to increase the competition of pharmacies, one pharmacy owner may own only one pharmacy in the territory of the hospital.

CONTEXT:

Social media in the section three years ago The “invisible power of pharmacy” reported that pharmacy networks are growing, but the share of independent pharmacies is declining. In addition, there are opportunities to expand networks mostly at the expense of independent pharmacies. The then Minister of Health, Anda Chaksha (formerly the Greens and Farmers Union, now the “New Unity”), initially said he did not see a problem in the fact that large pharmacy chains had grown in recent years, but the share of independent pharmacies has decreased. Later, though, the VM admitted that he would form a working group to search solutions to certain highlighted problems.

The social media, under the heading “Invisible Power of Pharmacy”, also revealed that pharmacies have lists of primarily recommended drugs and bonuses for selling them, Popular over – the – counter medicines are common in Latvia more expensive than in Estonia and Lithuania and other problems in the field of Latvian pharmacy.

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