“After leaving the cash register, we do not accept returns” – such cards can be found at the checkout in clothing stores and more. According to Polish law, the seller is not obliged to accept the return of non-defective goods if the customer has changed his mind. What is the situation with drugs? Can we return a drug that we have not used to the pharmacy?
Returning drugs at the pharmacy
What is the process of returning medicines to pharmacies and can it be done at all? Suppose we purchased a prescription for several packages of the drug we are taking. During treatment, our attending physician decides to change the dose of the drug or proposes treatment with a different active substance. What to do with drug packages that have not been used?
Pursuant to the provisions (Pharmaceutical Law – Art. 96 (7)) “medicinal products, foodstuffs for particular nutritional uses and medical devices dispensed from pharmacies are not returnable”.
– As a rule, the regulations limit the possibility of returning medicines to pharmacies, mainly due to the lack of a guarantee that the conditions in which the patient stored the medicinal product were appropriate – explains Tomasz Leleno, the press spokesman of the Supreme Pharmaceutical Chamber.
The pharmacist is not able to check the conditions under which the medicines have been stored and cannot accept the return, even if the products are in their original packaging and have not exceeded the expiry date. The situation is similar when we want to return another preparation because we changed our mind or bought the wrong one.
Also read: Poorly stored drugs are poisonous
However, it is worth knowing that pursuant to Art. 96 sec. 8 of the Pharmaceutical Law, the provision on the non-possibility of returns does not apply to a medicinal product or a medical device returned to a pharmacy due to a quality defect, improper dispensing or counterfeiting of a medicinal product.
— The exclusion of drugs from returns does not apply, inter alia, to in the case of a quality defect of a medicinal product. In this situation, the pharmacist takes the defective medicine from the patient, but there is no possibility of a refund for this product. Therefore, the responsibility in this respect most often rests with the pharmaceutical companies whose defective series of drugs are on the market. First of all, because the causes of neglect should be looked for at the stage of drug production, and not in the activities carried out by pharmacies – adds the NIA spokesman.
So if we read the batch recall message of the drug we are currently using, we can return it to the pharmacy, but be prepared for the fact that we will not get a refund for it immediately. This process may take up to several weeks.
Return of expired drugs
Each of us should regularly check the home medicine cabinet and eliminate medicines that have expired or have not been used for a long time. What to do with such preparations? Certainly, they cannot be thrown into the sewage system or thrown into “ordinary” garbage. Such an action poses a threat to the environment. Instead, unused / expired drugs can be returned to the pharmacy.
— The best solution is to go to a nearby pharmacy equipped with a special container for medicines intended for disposal. You can add preparations in various forms (including tablets, capsules, syrups). The vast majority of pharmacies have such containers, but not all – explains the spokesman and adds – A pharmacy interested in providing such a service to patients should report to the city office and sign an appropriate contract. He receives an appropriate container, which is periodically emptied by the company dealing with waste collection.
So before we go to a pharmacy with a bag of unnecessary drugs, it is worth checking whether it provides such services. If not, the pharmacist will surely indicate another pharmacy that will accept our medicines.
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