Overview
- In its November report, the Cour des comptes finds that generalizing unit dispensing is not cost‑effective and should be limited to specific cases such as shortages and very high‑cost medicines.
- The court estimates only about 45% of medicines would be eligible for per‑unit dispensing, representing roughly 15% of spending, and notes current per‑unit sales account for just 0.08% of out‑of‑hospital drug costs.
- Dispensing by the unit would mainly apply to tablets and capsules and would significantly increase pharmacists’ handling time, requiring adjusted remuneration or investment in automation.
- The report cites safety and quality arguments for full boxes, which better preserve sterility and verify authenticity, as a further constraint on wider rollout.
- Pharmacy practitioners interviewed by TF1 describe the process as time‑consuming, and reporting highlights that theoretical savings could be eclipsed by hundreds of millions of euros in added costs to health insurance.