He The Government of Navarra approved Foral Decree 88/2024 during its session this Wednesdaywhich regulates the hours of service to the public, childcare and temporary closure of pharmacy offices in Navarre.
Until now, the activity of pharmacy offices was regulated by a 2003 standardwhich needed to be updated to adapt to the technical and social changes recorded over the last two decades, as indicated by the Regional Executive.
As the Minister of Health, Fernando Domínguez, explained during the press conference following the session, “in recent years there have been many changes that have affected the activity of pharmaciessuch as its accessibility, the introduction of electronic prescriptions, the opening of pharmacies with extended hours and the economic situation which compromises the viability of many pharmacies, particularly in rural areas.
“This new context and respond to a demand from the sector itself encouraged us to promote this new regulation which establishes an update and modification of the standard to adapt it to current reality and demand according to the experience acquired in recent years,” Domínguez indicated.
Among the main novelties of the approved decree, on the one hand, the regulation of the so-called pharmaceutical guard zone stands out, which refers to the basic health zones or groupings or segregations of neighboring basic health zonescreated for the organization of on-call services in pharmaceutical establishments.
The changes represent the union of certain areas or the elimination of night shifts which leads to changes in the pharmaceutical areas of Aoiz-Burguete, Isaba-Salazar, Estella-Lizarra region, Tafalla-Artajona, Puente la Reina, Santesteban-Elizondo or Peralta.
On the other hand, it was introduced mandatory for on-call pharmacies in rural areas open for a few hours Sundays and public holidayswhich represents an improvement for citizens living in rural areas, who will have a new service that not everyone had until now.
With the new decree, the timetable for opening of pharmacies at usual hours, excluding on-call, it will be from Monday to Friday, both inclusive, in morning and afternoon shifts, the same for each day, for a minimum of four hours in the morning, between 8 p.m. and 3 p.m., and two and a half hours per day. .in the afternoon, between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m.
In the case of Saturday, in the morning, They will remain open for at least three hoursin pharmaceutical on-call zone and/or in urban areas, and two hours, in rural areas, between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.
When duly justified exceptional situations arise, pharmacies can request closure on Saturdayprovided that half of local pharmacies remain open and adequate pharmaceutical care is guaranteed.
In the case of pharmacies located in municipalities with less than 700 inhabitantsas well as those which are the only pharmacy open to the public in the municipality, provided that the health center is not located in the municipality, can create a reduced customer service hours compared to ordinary, respecting the following minimums: from Monday to Friday, both inclusive, they must remain open at least 5 hours per day and on Saturdays they can close provided that pharmaceutical care is guaranteed by the pharmacies guard. . in or near the pharmaceutical service area and are located at a distance of no more than 30 minutes.
THE Sundays and public holidays in the Foral Community of Navarreincluding local public holidays, only pharmacy offices responsible for providing on-call service will remain open to the public, in addition to those located in shopping centers and those with continuous hours.
The standard also considers planning and information for health department of these hours, by making them visible to the public, the permanence of a pharmacist in the establishment for the dispensation of medicines or specific cases for the closure of the pharmacy office during the summer season, among other questions of organization of the service and guards.
