No relocation at the pharmacy emergency service

Federal Administrative Court ruled: Pharmacy emergency service goes in a row

27/05/2011

Pharmacists can not relocate the emergency service between main pharmacy and pharmacy branches. The emergency service goes according to schedule in turn, taking into account all branches, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig decided with its verdict of 26 May. (File reference: 3 C 21.10 and 22.10)

A pharmacist, who runs a main pharmacy and three branches in Gera, complained to the Federal Administrative Court against the prohibition of the Landesapothekerkammer that in the relegation of the emergency service between the various branches prohibited. The pharmacists wanted to align the emergency service only in a branch, which is also in close proximity to the emergency medical service of the city. However, the Federal Administrative Court followed the arguments of the Landesapothekerkammer and thus obligated the pharmacist to regularize the emergency service at the various locations.

State pharmacist forbids relocation of the emergency service
The Landesapothekerkammer had always rejected the apothecary's requests to use the upcoming emergency services exclusively in a specific branch. On the grounds that this would favor the development of priority pharmacies. Among other things, the pharmacist counteracted the freedom to exercise professional rights enshrined in the Basic Law. But the Federal Administrative Court did not want to follow the plaintiff's arguments. It was a discretionary decision, in which the Landesapothekkammer was guided by appropriate considerations on the basis of its guidelines, the Federal Administrative Court ruled. In general, the regular change of the emergency service serves the uniform burden of the staff and the even distribution of the locations of the emergency service over the municipality. Thus, the BVerwG confirmed the ban on relocation of the emergency service between the various pharmacy branches. According to the judgment of the Federal Administrative Court, the decision of the Landesapothekerkammer is not objectionable in the sense of the freedom of occupation (Article 12 of the Basic Law). (Fp)

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Picture: siepmannH, Pixelio.de