Pharmacists to strike Jan. 30 in protest of Health Minister's move to lower profit margin on meds

Czech pharmacists have decided to hold a three-hour protest strike on Monday, January 30th, in defiance of policies proposed by Health Minister David Rath, namely the lowering of profit margin on medicines by 3 percent. On Sunday, after meeting with the prime minister, the head of the Czech Pharmacists' Association Lubomir Chudoba said pharmacists would also launch a public campaign explaining how - in their view - Mr Rath's proposal would be damaging. According to Mr Chudoba, the lower profit margin will threaten one-third of the country's 2,200 pharmacies. The health minister, though, has made clear patients' interests are of higher priority, since in the health sector pharmacists rank among the highest-income groups.