Today the Municipalities following the strengthening of the pharmaceutical distribution service, and access to the ownership of pharmacies, introduced by art. 11 of Legislative Decree 1/12, hold the exercise of the competences related to the planning on the territory of the offices, while the Regions, through the ASL offices, maintain the functions of impulse and control, as well as replacing said power, aimed at guaranteeing the '' biennial approval of organic plants and the consequent ordinary and extraordinary competitions for the assignment of the pharmacy offices that have become vacant or newly established following the population / territory division.

 

As we have seen in other contributions, the Municipalities have a preponderant role in the establishment of pharmacies and in the organization of the location on the territory, thanks to the proximity and connection with the territory.

 

The revision of the organic plant of the pharmacies constitutes the central moment of the organization of the pharmaceutical service in the territory, being an act of general planning function with which the provisions of the law are concretely applied in the life of each single municipality.

 

Therefore, the revision, on the basis of the resident population and any topographical and viability needs of the territory, determines both the number of pharmaceutical establishments available to the local community, and the tendential location of each to be, through the subdivision of the territory municipal in different areas limited by precise boundaries, and the assignment of each area to a corresponding pharmacist.

 

The organic plan drawn up by the Municipality must take into account the resident population according to the available ISTAT indexes, the existing pharmaceutical offices, the assigned pharmaceutical offices, and the district of each pharmacy.

 

Therefore, the revision will involve: the establishment of new offices, the redefinition of existing ones, the decentralization of pharmacies in case there was the need to relocate a previous office, or following the owner's transfer request, upon confirmation of the previous one. organic plant, and the reabsorption of the established offices not yet in operation due to the decrease in the population.

 

With the exception of the Municipalities with a single pharmaceutical headquarters, the organic plant is accompanied by the cartographic representation of the offices.

 

The cartographic representation and the literal description must identify the identical portion of the municipal territory.

The organic plant is also accompanied by an appendix indicating, where

present:

- the additional pharmacies established by the Region in the places ad

high transit

- permanent pharmaceutical dispensaries;

- seasonal pharmaceutical dispensaries;

- branch pharmacies.

 

The Region, at the beginning of each even year, sends a communication to the Municipalities to invite them to review the organic plant of the pharmacies. The communication is also sent to the USL companies, which, as part of a collaborative relationship aimed at ensuring the best distribution of pharmacies in the area, assume a dual role: on the one hand they offer technical support to the Municipalities that request it and suggest any changes. in their opinion, aimed at improving the distribution of pharmacies; on the other hand, they verify compliance with the obligatory obligations of the Municipalities thus allowing the possible exercise of the substitute power by the Region.

 

Within the month of February of the same even year, the Municipality starts the revision process of its own organic plant and, having assessed the adequacy of the distribution of pharmacies in its territory, draws up a project that can be a revision or confirmation of the existing organic plant.

 

The project is a document that indicates whether the pre-existing organic plant is confirmed or whether, instead, it is subject to revision,

 

The project is confirmed when the number of pharmaceutical offices and the perimeter districts remain unchanged (description of the territorial offices). In this case, the organic plan is simply updated with the data of the resident population and possibly adjusted for variations and errors (for example, changes in ownership, address, urban / rural classification).

The project, on the other hand, is revised when the number of pharmaceutical sites varies and, consequently, the perimeter constituencies vary, or when, while the number of pharmaceutical sites remains unchanged, the constituencies vary.

 

In the revision project the Municipality also indicates the new pharmaceutical offices on which it intends to exercise the right of pre-emption, within the limit of half of the vacant and newly established offices, pursuant to article 9 of the law 2 April 1968, n. 475. In the case of a single vacant pharmacy or a new institution, the pre-emption is exercised alternatively to the competition, in the sense that the option by the Municipality is possible only if the last assignment of the office carried out in the municipality took place through public competition ( so-called alternation criterion); if the number of vacant or newly established seats is odd, the preference is for the excess unit to the Municipality.

 

Once the project has been developed, the Municipality sends it to the Provincial Order of Pharmacists competent for the area to acquire, within thirty days, the opinion required by state legislation (Article 11 of Legislative Decree 1/2012, converted into Law 27 / 2012).

 

Before closing two aspects to be specified.

 

The administrative justice has repeatedly reiterated that the territorially competent Order of Pharmacists, as well as the local ASL MUST be heard in advance for the purpose of reformulating the organic plan, but the non-alignment with their indications does not constitute an irregularity so much so that the In the absence of an answer, municipalities can still proceed after 90 days from the request for an opinion. On the other hand, what is most important is the proof that the Municipal Authority has actually given life to a completed investigation aimed at supporting the reasons for the confirmation and / or reform of the municipal organic plant, and this is because the resolution of the Council will be sufficient. motivated, within the limits of reasonableness and administrative discretion.

 

Last point, which municipal body is responsible for the revision?

The major jurisprudence confers this task on the Board, even if there are arrests in favor of the Municipal Councils especially also in relation to some Ministerial recommendations on the subject, and this because of the basis of the choices of revision which, dealing with fundamental moments of social life, affect on the programming of the service, and therefore would fall within the competence of the City Council.