Ban on Pharmacy Open by Corporation Violates Equality among Jobs

The Constitutional Court decided that Clause 1, Article 16 of the law regarding pharmacists is unconstitutional. The law stipulates that only individuals, pharmacists or pharmacists with license to dispense Chinese medicine can establish drug stores.

Justice Kim Young Il of the Constitutional Court made the ruling over a petition with the court against the law saying, “Banning a corporation consisting of only pharmacists from dispensing drugs violates people’s right to business.”

However, according to the ruling, the existing law will be in effect for a specific time in order to prevent confusion resulted from a legal vacuum.

As a result, Clause 1, Article 16 of the law will be in force until the National Assembly revises the law. And after the revision, a corporation can open and run a large-scale pharmacy.

The Constitutional Court noted that there was no reason to allow only a natural person to open and operate a pharmacy and the existing law violated freedom to choose jobs and ran counter to equality in essence.

The court also added, “The prohibition of ordinary people other than pharmacists from opening a pharmacy is not unconstitutional. So, the court cannot rule that the whole law on pharmacists is against the Constitution.

The court recommended the National Assembly to revise the law in order to allow pharmacists to establish a corporation to open a pharmacy like those with other professional jobs.

Wi-Yong Jung viyonz@donga.com