The new rules on competition and consumer rights, also known as the Bersani package, consist of a 24-page document, three of which liquidate the drug issue in the terms that are reproduced here in full.
1) Over-the-counter or self-medication drugs not subject to medical prescription may be sold to the public in shops: a provision of the decree law provides that the sale is permitted during the opening hours of the shop, in a well-defined part of its surface and distinct from the other departments, with the assistance of one or more graduate pharmacists registered in the relevant order. In any case, competitions, prize operations and below cost sales of drugs are prohibited. EFFECTS: the consumer will be able to buy over-the-counter medicines easily at drugstores and supermarkets
2) Freedom to discount drugs: a provision of the decree law provides that the discount on the price indicated by the manufacturer or distributor on the packaging of each drug can be freely determined by each retail distributor, provided it is displayed legibly and clearly to the consumer and is applied to all buyers. Thus the maximum discount ceiling of the 20% introduced by the previous government is abolished. NB: Over-the-counter medicines represent the 10% of all medicines sold.
EFFECTS: More competition and consequent reduction of prices
3) The obligation for drug wholesalers to hold at least the 90% of the specialties on the market (for medicines not eligible for reimbursement by the NHS) disappears: at the same time, a provision of the decree law provides for the possibility for the retailer to obtain supplies from another wholesaler. EFFECTS: Market rigidities are eliminated, thus avoiding the accumulation of inventories which would hinder a commercial policy capable of containing prices
4) The pharmacist can be the owner of several pharmacies, join together to manage several exercises and is no longer required to respect the provincial territorial border for carrying out his activity. Finally, the incompatibility between wholesale and retail activities is eliminated. Nota Bene: The EU has referred Italy to the Court of Justice due to restrictions on the acquisition and possession of pharmacies. Italy is contested for the prohibition on the acquisition of pharmacies by companies active in wholesale distribution, as well as the rules on the possession of pharmacies reserved only for pharmacists.
EFFECTS: rationalization of the market (and economies of scale) to the benefit of users in terms of price reduction
