Electronic prescriptions should offer dependability, as per pharmacy administrators; Warken aims to fortify pharmacies with this improvement.
Nina Warken, the Federal Minister of Health, has presented key points for a comprehensive pharmacy reform aimed at strengthening the position of local pharmacies and expanding them as a low-threshold contact point in healthcare. The reform includes measures to allow pharmacies to offer simple diagnostic tests for early detection of cardiovascular diseases and administer more vaccinations, including inactive vaccines. Pharmacists will also be able to take over rapid tests and provide care without a medical prescription for chronic patients or uncomplicated minor illnesses. The electronic patient record (ePA) will play a central role in the pharmacy reform, with all services being recorded and documented transparently for doctors, pharmacists, and patients. This is expected to prevent duplicate prescriptions, improve medication plans, and enable secure information exchange in the ePA. However, the reform has faced criticism from Thomas Preis, the president of the ABDA, who has expressed concerns about competition from foreign online retailers. Preis warned against allowing pharmaceutical technical assistants (PTA) to temporarily replace pharmacists, citing the sensitivity of medications and the importance of responsibility. E-prescription system issues have been causing significant additional costs and lost sales for pharmacies, with each pharmacy spending approximately 20 hours per week compensating for these problems. Pharmacies also face the threat of retroactive charges by health insurance companies for minor formal errors in e-prescriptions. Despite the higher remuneration announced in the coalition agreement between Union and SPD, it has been revealed that this will not materialize this year. Warken announced implementation of the higher remuneration only after the stabilization of the financial situation of the statutory health insurance. Preis has also criticized the idea of financing the doubling of the on-call duty allowance from the fund for pharmaceutical services, expressing disagreement over this proposal. Pharmacies are seen as indispensable for healthcare, serving as the first point of contact, especially in rural areas, and expected to relieve doctors' practices more in the future. There is consensus that pharmacies should have more self-responsibility, less bureaucracy, and modern care, but Preis emphasized the need for fair remuneration and economic security for a sustainable future. The responsible organization for enforcing planned penalties against infringements by foreign online pharmacies on the German pharmacy sector has not been specified. Many pharmacies are struggling with rising costs, particularly a one-time increase of a component of the remuneration from the current 8.35 euros per package to 9.50 euros. Emergency care without a prescription can be provided, but it must be traceable in the ePA to prevent patients from going from pharmacy to pharmacy and obtaining multiple medications. Pharmacists will need to ensure that they follow these regulations to maintain patient safety and fair competition in the pharmacy sector.
Read also:
- Inadequate supply of accessible housing overlooks London's disabled community
- Strange discovery in EU: Rabbits found with unusual appendages resembling tentacles on their heads
- Duration of a Travelling Blood Clot: Time Scale Explained
- Fainting versus Seizures: Overlaps, Distinctions, and Proper Responses
