Electronic prescriptions to be mandatory

Prague, March 6 (CTK) - Electronic prescription will replace the existing paper ones in the Czech Republic in 2015 as from when they will be mandatory, under an amendment to the law on medicines that President Vaclav Klaus signed Wednesday, his spokesman Radim Ochvat has told CTK.

Pharmacists do not challenge the electronic prescriptions, but say the system will not be ready within two years.

Doctors say the prescriptions will not be of any benefit for patients and that the project only siphons off money from the health system.

They also say patients' data may be threatened.

Czech Doctors' Chamber (CLK) chairman Milan Kubek says the electronic prescriptions will cause huge problems to patients and add work to doctors whose costs will rise.

The authors of the amendment from among government coalition deputies expect the mandatory electronic prescriptions to save one to two billion crowns annually and to eliminate "false" prescriptions.

Doctors have been able to make out electronic prescriptions on agreement with the patient for several years, but the system is not reportedly much used.

The amendment also restricts the export of medicines from the Czech market by pharmacies' operators who are distributors at the same time.

It also newly defines the post of chief pharmacist. One pharmacist could explicitly perform the post for one pharmacy only.

Klaus also signed Wednesday an amendment allowing associations providing social services not only for their own members, but also to other interested people to turn into general benefit societies.

It will take effect in the first month following promulgation.