Determinants for Spatial Location of Pharmacies

Abstract

The topic of drug reimbursement is an important subject when one makes a decision on the construction of the reform of the health sector. Any change in the reimbursement list ends with a hot debate in the media and in everyday life. Incomprehensible pricing strategies used by pharmacies, force patients to seek those places that offer the necessary medication at the lowest possible price. Recognizing the economic opportunities for a profitable business, in recent years, a significant increase in the number of pharmacies is observed, and therefore, the number of these entities makes the process of selling drugs, especially those from the reimbursement list, almost impossible to control. The article aims to reveal the spatial dependence for the pharmaceutical market on the example of pharmacies in poviat districts of Poland. An attempt is made to assess the prevalence of spatial dependence between the number of pharmacies and other determinants indicating health care resources, ageing process and the state of health of Poles. The summary of the study is to build a spatial model with its diagnosis for the number of pharmacies according to various socio-economic factors.