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Pharmacy Ownership Laws

One U.S. state, North Dakota, and nearly a dozen European countries have laws that require that pharmacies be owned by pharmacists. These laws ensure that pharmacy services are controlled by local health care providers and not by distant corporations.  

Research indicates that limiting drugstore ownership to independent pharmacists results in superior and more broadly available pharmacy services, as well as economic benefits for local communities.

Consumer Reports has repeatedly ranked independent pharmacies #1 overall since it began conducting drugstore "consumer satisfaction" surveys in 1998.  The magazine reports that independent drugstores fill orders faster, provide more information and personal attention, and offer more health services, such as disease management education, in-store screenings, compounding, and home delivery.  

Pharmacy ownership laws have been upheld by both the U.S. Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice.  (Follow the links below for more details.)

Rules

Pharmacy Ownership Laws — Europe

  • International
    • Pharmacy ownership laws are more prevalent in Europe.  Eleven of the 27 European Union member states (Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Slovenia, and Spain) do not allow non-pharmacists to hold a majority stake in pharmacies.   More

    Pharmacy Ownership Law — North Dakota

  • State
    • Enacted in 1963, North Dakota's Pharmacy Ownership Law stipulates that only pharmacies that are majority owned by a licensed pharmacist may be granted a permit to operate in the state.  Research on the law's impact shows that North Dakota has more pharmacies dispersed across rural areas than other states, has among the lowest prescription drug prices in the country, and reaps significant economic benefits from the fact that most of its pharmacies are locally owned. More

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