The over-the-counter medicine reform must strengthen the consumer’s position and correct the distortion of competition

The consumer would benefit from the widest possible range of liberalised over-the-counter medicines. Optician services are a good example of improving the consumer’s position. With the wide liberalised range, medicines for the treatment of dry eye syndrome, for example, would be available at optics stores which also have the best expertise in eye health. At the same time, the over-the-counter medicine reform would reduce the current distortion of competition related to pharmaceutical sales and pharmaceutical operations.

“Finland has found itself in a difficult situation in which pharmacies can sell almost any products from batteries to contact lenses and provide extensive healthcare services, such as vaccinations as well as nurse’s and remote doctor’s appointments, but other healthcare operators are not allowed the same opportunities,” says Panu Tast, Managing Director of the Finnish Association of Vision and Eyecare.

“This is a significant competition neutrality problem, which the over-the-counter medicine reform would alleviate,” Tast continues.

Can the consumers in Finland be brought to the same level as consumers in the other Nordic countries?

“With a successful over-the-counter medicine reform, Finland would follow the Nordic model, albeit decades behind the other Nordic countries,” says Kari Luoto, Managing Director of the Finnish Commerce Federation.

“The over-the-counter medicine reform was implemented in Denmark in 2001, in Norway in 2003 and in Sweden in 2009,” says Luoto.

According to the Finnish Commerce Federation, the reform should correct the failures of the previous pharmacy reform. Price competition in over-the-counter medicines and discounts granted to customers for over-the-counter medicines have been possible since 1 April 2022. According to Fimea’s survey, almost three quarters of pharmacists did not grant discounts on over-the-counter medicines to their customers*.

”Price competition has been tried and proven not to work. In the current operating model, there is no need for pharmacies to compete on prices, in which case the consumer is the loser,” says Luoto.

“It is essential that the over-the-counter medicine reform will liberalise a range of medicines that brings real added value to consumers,” Luoto continues.

In the preparations for the reform, the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority has called for** a sufficiently wide range to be liberated, as this would improve customers’ possibilities to purchase timely over-the-counter medication and strengthen the conditions for price competition as well as the incentives to participate in the market.

Benefits of the over-the-counter medicine reform for consumers:

• Expanding the sales of non-prescription drugs into the geographically comprehensive network and extensive opening hours of commerce would expand and improve the accessibility of pharmaceuticals and streamline transactions in both cities and sparsely populated areas.
• With the reform, over-the-counter medicines would be available in grocery stores, village shops, kiosks, optics stores and online stores, for example.
• The prices of over-the-counter medicines are also expected to decrease as a result of the liberalisation if the reform will enable genuine price competition and efficient procurement.
• According to Fimea’s Medicines Barometer, 45 per cent of all respondents would rather buy their over-the-counter medicines from a grocery store than from a pharmacy.

For further information, please contact:

Kari Luoto, Managing Director, Finnish Commerce Federation, tel. +358 (0) 400 688 708, kari.luoto(at)kauppa.fi

Panu Tast, Managing Director, Finnish Association of Vision and Eyecare, tel. (0) 40 5422 227, panu.tast(at)naery.fi

*Medicines Barometer 2023: Requirements for successful medical treatment in everyday life

**ATTACHMENT 3b 20240913_KKV_täydentävä_lausuma.pdf