Pharmacy strike: why will the curtains be closed this Thursday, May 30 ?

From 90% à 100% of pharmacies will be closed this Thursday, May 30, 2024. In question, a strike by pharmacists to protest against several ills which affect the profession as worrying. shortage of medicines.

Two unions, the USPO and the FSPF, filed a complaint. a strike notice supported by the National Order of Pharmacists for this Thursday, May 30, 2024.  This operation "curtain closed& ;quot; should result in the closure of 90 à 95% of pharmacies in France according to the unions, an unprecedented mobilization in ten years. "Certain departments such as Aude and Mayenne will be at risk. more than 90%, even 100% of pharmacies declared to be on strike warns Pierre-Olivier Variot, president of the USPO in the columns of Le Parisien. And the demands are multiple.

Revaluation of fees, shortage of medicines and lack of resources

First of all, pharmacists cite a glaring lack of medicines. In 2014, only 400 references were missing. the call. In 2023, nearly 5,000 references are missing. Voilaà why, pharmacists waste time during working hours to call doctors to find alternatives to treat patients. 

But the crux of the matter remains money. Pharmacists are demanding increases in their fees and support. The amount proposed by the CNAM is currently considered insufficient. The unions are demanding a billion euros more than in 2019 because "the budget that is put on the table does not allow all the pharmacies to be financed&quot ; indicates Philippe Besset, president of the FSPF on France Bleu. Pierre-Olivier Variot highlights in Le Parisien the difficulty of that the sector is going through "between the shortage of medicines and the closure of pharmacies".

The daily tells us that the current situation could lead to the dismissal of 20,000 workers. 25,000 pharmacists. According to the national security agency, of medicines (ANSM), in January 2024, 4925 reports of shortages or risks of stock shortages were received. lifts. "This winter we missed of cortisone and before, of Doliprane. This is a more than worrying situation. alert Pierre-Olivier Variot in Le Figaro. The reform of the 6th year of pharmacy studies is also expected in order to improve the situation. welcome additional students in pharmacies. Finally, the "deregulation of the official network" increasingly worries trade unionists, in other words, the sale of medicines on the internet. 

At the same time, pharmacies are facing increasing pressures. the multiplication of expenses and the great upheaval of their profession. If the new missions entrusted to pharmacies such as vaccinations, particularly since the Covid health crisis or even screenings are welcomed by professionals in the sector, the latter however regret & nbsp;the lack of additional resources to enable them to carry out welcome these new missions, and this additional work. 

"Almost 100 % of pharmacies" closed in Occitanie

In the Rhône department, 95% of pharmacies will be closed indicates Actu Lyon. The prefecture has requisitioned a pharmacy in each guard sector to respond to emergencies. À Paris, "the mobilization promises to be less strong, because there is a stronger individualism with a lesser sense of the collective than in the provinces" explains Philippe Besset.

In the Nord and Pas-de-Calais, "almost allé pharmacies will be closed, there will be shortages of unmanageable medications, margins will become too restricted and new missions will be poorly paid" are evoked by the Voice of the North. Finally, "in the Midi-Pyrénées region, almost 100 % of pharmacies will follow suit" indicates Marie-Dominique Ory-Hemain, president of the Union of Community Pharmacists Unions (USPO) in Occitanie in the columns of Actu Toulouse.