Selected Issues of Legislation with regard to Operating Pharmacies in the Slovak Republic / Vybrané problémy právnej úpravy prevádzkovania lekární v podmienkach Slovenskej republiky

Among the basic rights and freedoms, stipulated in the Constitution of the Slovak Republic, are right to protection of health, free medical care based on health insurance, right to medical aids under conditions stipulated by law. These rights are guaranteed through provisions of Art. 40 of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic as part of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and they apply to every individual. Since these rights are considered to be human rights under the international law, they are guaranteed by multilateral treaties in which Slovak Republic is a signatory, such as International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Legal regulation of operating pharmacies in the Slovak Republic covers a broad scope of issues and is quite extensive. Through concerted legislative effort, the legislator had tried to set rules that would make the legal environment in this sector more transparent and easier to navigate through. In some areas, the rules were set by the legislature of the European Union (EU) and the Slovak legislature only adapted them. The most important aspect of legal regulation in this sphere that is not completely regulated by the EU legislature is providing pharmaceutical care and usage of the public health insurance system with regard to providing pharmaceutical care.

The main aim of this study is to point out select issues that are associated with the position of a pharmacy operator and obligations stipulated in the Medicines Act 2011 that must be observed and incorporated into the running of a pharmacy. This area of business is fairly strictly regulated and therefore it is necessary to get acquainted with the relevant legislation. The study addresses several issues regulated by the Medicines Act 2011 or the Appropriate Pharmaceutical Practice Regulation 2012 from the legal-theoretical perspective.