Vienna is planning a pharmaceutical exchange: A step towards the circular economy?

Vienna is planning a pharmaceutical exchange: A step towards the circular economy?

What is happening in Vienna when it comes to drug supply? In mid-October, the city of Vienna presented its strategy against the waste of resources, which also includes innovative approaches in the health sector. The Environment and Climate City Councilor, Jürgen Czernohorszky (SPÖ), mentioned the idea, among othersMedicine exchange sitebetween clinics as a best practice example. But something seems to have gone terribly wrong here.

When we asked the Vienna Health Association (Wigev), we learned that there is currently no such drug exchange. Spokesman Tobias Grubinger made it clear that implementation was not possible for pharmaceutical law reasons and administrative requirements. Unfortunately, this realization comes too late, as the pharmaceutical exchange was incorrectly listed as an existing part of the circular economy strategy, rather than as a future goal. It is therefore clear: there are currently no plans for drug exchanges in the Wigev nursing homes, although the City of Vienna plans to examine their feasibility - of course in strict compliance with the applicable drug regulations.

Legal hurdles when exchanging medicines

What does it look like when it comes to exchanging medicines in pharmacies? Here, pharmacies generally have the opportunity to support each other and provide medication. These regulations are based on the pharmacy operating regulations (ApBetrO) and the Medicines Act (AMG).

• Unter bestimmten Voraussetzungen ist ein Austausch erlaubt, etwa wenn Arzneimittel in dringenden Fällen nötig sind.
• Der § 17 Abs. 6c der ApBetrO beschreibt, dass es eine Ausnahme gibt, wenn die unverzügliche Anwendung des Arzneimittels erforderlich ist.
• Aktuelle Engpässe in der Versorgung könnten die Bedingungen für solche Ausnahmen in vielen Fällen erfüllen.

These legal hurdles show that while the exchange of medicines in the pharmacy is possible under certain conditions, in the hospital setting it is much more demanding. This could be problematic for a quick solution in Vienna's healthcare system.

The future of drug supply

The lack of clarity surrounding the drug exchange raises many questions. When will the city of Vienna really achieve a breakthrough? Although there is a plan to examine the feasibility, no specific time frame for the implementation of the exchange has been announced. In the interim uncertainty, it remains to be seen what progress will actually be made in care and drug supply.

It remains exciting to see whether Vienna can not only take a step towards a circular economy in the near future, but also implement a sensible solution to reduce the waste of resources in the health sector. The city definitely has a lot on the table, something is coming!

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