why does nobody talk about Apotheke

why does nobody talk about Apotheke. I am not trying to be the "source?" guy. I would just like a source.

The structure that makes this board make sense, once.

Marketing authorisation for these products is granted centrally, which is why the same product exists across the union. Everything after that — whether it is reimbursed, on what criteria, at what price, in what pack size, dispensed under what margin rules — is decided nationally.

So "is it covered" has twenty-seven answers, "what does it cost" has twenty-seven answers plus within-country variation, and only "is it authorised" has one. Almost every argument on this board is two people answering different questions from different countries, both correctly.

How to compare prices across borders without misleading yourself.

Normalise the pack size first. Presentations differ between member states and a headline figure for one pack is not comparable to another. Then separate reimbursed from private prices, which are set by entirely different mechanisms. Then note the dispensing fee structure, which is nationally regulated.

When members here have done all three, the interesting finding has consistently been that variation between pharmacies within a country is often as large as the variation between countries — which makes the cross-border shopping most of these threads are really about far less attractive than it looks.

On cross-border prescriptions, since the assumption behind half these threads is wrong.

There are EU rules on the recognition of prescriptions issued in another member state, and they are conditional: the prescription has to meet requirements about its form and content, certain categories are excluded, and pharmacies retain discretion in practice.

The result is that "my prescription will be accepted anywhere in the EU" is not a safe assumption, and members here have discovered it at a counter in another country. If it matters for a trip, check before you travel with the pharmacy and with somebody qualified where you are. Nothing on this board is advice about that, and the rules are national in their application whatever the framework says.

I will update this if the picture changes rather than quietly leaving it up.