A middle ground has yet to be found between the Competition Authority and the Irish Pharmaceutical Union on the controversial issue of how the pharmacy sector should be regulated.
Both groups sit on the Pharmacy Review Group which is due to make its recommendations to Government on the regulation of the sector in a month or so.
The Competition Authority favours a liberal regime while the Irish Pharmaceutical Union wants to have some restrictions on entry into the sector.
The Pharmacy Review Group was set up by Minister for Health, Mr Martin, in November 2001 and is chaired by Dr Michael Mortell, of UCC. Other members include representatives from the Departments of Health, Finance and Enterprise, Trade and Employment, as well as a health board member.
While the group has secured agreement on issues such as quality control, it has failed to breach the gap between the views taken by the Competition Authority and the IPU.
Last January, the Minister revoked regulations restricting the opening of new pharmacies. He had received legal advice from the Attorney General that the restrictions were ultra vires. They had prohibited opening new pharmacies within a certain distance of an existing pharmacy. The Competition Authority had described these regulations as "deeply anti-competitive" and said they had helped to keep prices high.
It is understood that Mr Martin is anxious that the group soon reaches agreement on the issue. After the restrictions were lifted in January 2002, he asked the Pharmacy Review Group to issue its report "as quickly as possible".
Meanwhile, the IPU is stepping up its campaign opposing the total liberalisation of the sector. This morning, pharmacists from the United States and New Zealand will address a meeting in Dublin and give their experiences of regulation. They are expected to be critical of full liberalisation and will promote the need for certain restrictions on entry into the sector.
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