In the aftermath of a mobilization day marked by the late opening of pharmacies or symbolic actions such as the coloring of the fountains in green in Nice, pharmacists do not give up. The exasperation is present, the concerns ever more keen with the 2016 Social Security financing project which plans to save money by notably reducing the price of drugs. Rising costs, lower turnover, more and more pharmacies are struggling to keep their business running and threaten to go out of business. In 2014, the turnover of more than one in two pharmacies would have decreased, according to the Federation of Pharmaceutical Unions of France (FSPF). A quarter of them show a drop in activity of more than 4%.
Worse, a pharmacy disappears every two days in France, and the trend should not be reversed. The smallest pharmacies are the first targets. “The closures have accelerated since the beginning of the year,” explained Isabelle Adenot, president of the order of pharmacists, to Parisien on September 21.
Towards an emergency plan?
“We are fighting to maintain the territorial network and for our patients. Some are no longer able to treat themselves. Finally, let us not forget that there were 33,000 pharmacists in France ten years ago and … 22,000 today ‘hui “, yesterday worried pharmacists mobilized in the streets of Nice, questioned by Nice morning.
Some professionals are asking for an emergency plan to be put in place to help the most vulnerable pharmacies. It remains to be seen whether the fears and demands of the profession will be heard by the government.
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