Cheap pharmacies struggle with online competition

Mail-order pharmacies are calling the price wars on stationary pharmacies

03/25/2014

The mail order business with drugs is booming. More and more people are ordering their medication online. Mail-order pharmacies are registering a significant increase, especially for over-the-counter medicines. This is also confirmed by a study commissioned by the high-tech association Bitkom. From the point of view of inpatient pharmacies, the online offers are a big competitor, as they often attract their customers with dumping prices. Especially small pharmacies can not compete with the price war.

Mail order pharmacies score points with low prices for over-the-counter products
According to a study by the high-tech association Bitkom, around 16 million customers ordered medicines in a mail-order pharmacy in 2012. In the previous year, there were still nine million. Above all, the rapid increase could be linked to the low prices that large mail-order pharmacies can offer for over-the-counter products. About 60 percent of their turnover consists of such over-the-counter resources. By contrast, about 80 percent of stationary pharmacies are focused on prescription drugs. „When we talk about price differences, they only mean non-prescription medicines“, explains Birte Wedell from the Apothekerkammer Niedersachsen to the online edition of the „Hessian / Lower Saxon general“. „Discounts on prescription medicines are prohibited by law.“ For prescription drugs, the German drug price regulation regulates the uniform pricing at the expense of statutory health insurance. Excluded from this rule since 2004 are only over-the-counter products. „Price differences in sales result from the fact that some pharmacists negotiate more favorable purchase conditions with the wholesale trade“, Wedell continues.

Mail-order pharmacy can not replace stationary pharmacy
The newspaper further reports that mail-order pharmacies have much better prognoses for the future than the resident pharmacies, but these could not necessarily compete with the masses. Dr. med. Martin Anschütz, specialist pharmacist for office pharmacy, from Göttingen, who operates a pharmacy with a small mail-order business, reports to the newspaper that additional offers are necessary. Nevertheless, he also could hardly keep up with the prices on the Internet. But he comes to his responsibility to the customer. „Pharmacist is a medical profession“, emphasizes Anschütz. „If I can not sell someone a product with a clear conscience, I advise against it.“ His mail order business is therefore limited locally.

The study „Online pharmacy mail order 2013“ according to only 5.4 percent of all pharmacies with mail order permission operate active Internet mail order. According to Christian Splett, press spokesman of the Federal Association of German Pharmacy Associations (ABDA), this corresponds to only about one to two percent in the market-relevant area. The expert sees in mail-order pharmacies no alternative to inpatient pharmacies.

How does the consumer recognize a reputable mail-order pharmacy??
The German Institute for Medical Documentation and Information (DIMDI) lists all approved mail order pharmacies on its website. There are listed not only German but also some foreign pharmacies. Consumers can use the list to find a trusted mail-order pharmacy. In addition, it is worth taking a look in the imprint of the selected provider. In addition to the address of the pharmacy and the name of the responsible pharmacist, the supervisory authority and the responsible pharmacy chamber must be listed there. Anyone ordering a prescription drug must also be requested by the mail order pharmacy to receive the prescription. Otherwise, no prescription agent may be shipped. In addition, mail order pharmacies are required to provide telephone advice to their customers. (Ag)