Chemists oppose move on business ownership

Press, 21 June 1985, Page 25

Chemists oppose move on business ownership

PA Wellington A move to deregulate pharmacy ownership would push small chemist shops out of business, according to the Chemists’ Guild. The Government announced a review of the Pharmacy Act, 1970, last month which would look at ownership and control provisions governing pharmacies. However, Mr Bruce Jenkin, the executive director of the Chemists Guild, which represents New Zealand’s 1140 chemist shop owners, said that if the Government opened up ownership there could be a rush of big companies into the field.

This would produce a proliferation of large super-market-type drug stores which would not be in the public interest, Mr Jenkin said. He said the “inevitable economic reaction to that” would be that small pharmacies would close. Chemists could not understand why the Government wanted to tinker with something that worked well. At the moment, chemist shops have to be 75 per cent owned by a registered pharmacist and most are singlyowned, although there are some partnerships. Trade and Industry Department officials have told the Chemists’ Guild the re-

view of pharmacy ownership restrictions does not question the need for pharmacist supervision of sales of medicines restricted by the Health Department However, the guild was also told this control requirement did not necessarily justify ownership restrictions. Chemists have been told they are not being singled out and that the Government is reviewing many different regulated sectors of the economy. However, Mr Jenkin said chemist shops were the “classic, small, independent business,” and many would be hurt by a change in ownership provisions.