Prescription medicines delivered to lockers? Czech ministry finishes draft law

Collecting prescription medicine from a delivery locker could become an option in Czechia under a draft law completed by the Health Ministry.

The proposal would allow prescription medicines to be dispensed by delivery, offering another route for patients who struggle to reach a pharmacy because of age, disability or where they live.

It is not yet law. The ministry says the draft will proceed through the legislative process after comments are addressed, and no launch date has been announced.

The ministry says delivery would supplement pharmacies, with professional checks and advice remaining part of the process.

Under the proposal, pharmacists would have to contact patients in specified circumstances and provide a consultation, potentially by telephone or video call.

In other cases, the pharmacist would decide whether a consultation was necessary or whether electronic instructions were sufficient. Patients would always have the right to request advice.

Health Minister Adam Vojtěch said the purpose was to improve access while preserving an available pharmacy network. He also said pharmacists had participated in preparing the draft.

Supporters include Václav Krása, chairman of the Czech National Disability Council, who highlighted the difficulties faced by people unable to enter inaccessible pharmacies.

He argued that remote dispensing could give pharmacists more time to examine prescriptions and identify potential problems before medicines reach patients.

Delivery would also need to preserve medicine quality. In an October notice on medicine transport, the State Institute for Drug Control reminded pharmacies that existing delivery operations must meet storage requirements, including monitoring and recording temperatures during transport and any intermediate storage.

The Czech Chamber of Pharmacists opposes prescription delivery, warning that reduced personal contact could increase the risk of medication errors going undetected.

In a chamber exercise last year, pharmacies identified more than 12,000 prescription errors over 15 days. Around 2,000 required consultation with a doctor, including cases involving missing or incorrect dosage instructions.

The chamber also argues that online dispensing could undermine smaller pharmacies by shifting revenue away from local branches.

It cited Sweden, where online orders account for approximately a third of pharmacy turnover and some smaller pharmacies receive state support.

However, Sweden’s pharmacy industry annual report recorded a slight increase in the total number of pharmacies last year. Swedish Pharmacy Association CEO Johan Wallér said physical branches remained central to medicine supply while online services improved access.

Czechia has approximately 2,500 pharmacies, nearly 1,000 operated by its two largest chains. Around 86 million packs of prescription medicine were prescribed last year.

The country also has approximately 18,000 delivery lockers, but the draft does not establish that every existing locker would be suitable for medicines.