Browse > Home / Business, Japan, Politics / Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow

Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow

May 31, 2009
By Ken Worsley


As of Monday morning, sales of most nonprescription drugs in Japan will be allowed at supermarkets and convenience stores due to a revision in the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law. Until today, any store wishing to sell nonprescription drugs was required to have a licensed pharmacist on staff. As of tomorrow, shops will be able to sell most prescription drugs over the counter provided they have a “registered salesperson” on duty.

The revision to the law divides nonprescription drugs into three categories. Category one drugs, which are classified as those that need some form of supervision, cannot be sold unless a pharmacist is on hand to provide customers with an explanation of the drug’s side effects. On the other hand, category two and category three drugs are considered safer, and can be sold by a “registered salesperson.” Category two and three drugs make up about 90% of Japan’s nonprescription drug market.

While the is certainly a huge step forward, the revisions also include a step backwards. From Monday, only category three medications will be able to be sold online or over the telephone. Category three drugs tend to include vitamins and other supplements, while category two represents cold and other related medications.

Thus, many traditional herbal medications fall under category two and will no longer be allowed to be sold online. As this could cause problems with some customers, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has decided that anyone who has been purchasing a category two drug by telephone or Internet will be able to do so for the next two years. Likewise, those living in remote places with no access to a pharmacy or drugstore will be able to continue shopping online for their medications.

The tightening of regulations concerning online sales of medications makes little sense. If the government feels it has the ability to monitor drug purchases under the two year grace period, why can it not monitor sales to ensure that Internet sellers are legitimate?

In practical terms, this stands to be a huge money maker for supermarkets and convenience stores that make the shift to selling nonprescription drugs. The over-the-counter drug market saw sales of about 1.16 trillion yen last year, and supermarkets will be able to buy in greater bulk and sell at lower prices than many local shops. A price war potentially looms on the horizon, and some existing drug stores are already planning to stay open later in order to compete with supermarkets and 24 hour convenience stores.

Filed Under Business, Japan, Politics 

Social Bookmarks:
del.icio.us:Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow digg:Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow newsvine:Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow furl:Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow reddit:Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow
Related Posts:
Darrel Whitten on the Nikkei’s nosedive
Quotes following yesterday’s Cabinet meeting
Auto Exports to the US Fall in April; First Fall in 27 Months
ING Direct expects to launch operations in Japan later this year
New issue of Japan Inc is out!

Comments

7 Responses to “Nonprescription drug sales in Japan take one step forward and one step back from tomorrow”

  1. Ken Worsley on June 1st, 2009 11:46 am

    Follow up: Japan Times has a piece today called “Ban on Internet drug sales blasted” http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090601a2.html

    It lists some of what’s included in the various categories, and it does seem rather random. Pregnancy tests are included in category two, which cannot be sold online due to safety concerns, while mouthwash is apparently listed at category three.

    It’s obviously easier to do more harm to yourself with mouthwash than a pregnancy test.

  2. David on June 1st, 2009 12:42 pm

    I have my doubts as to how much of a difference this will really make.

    I have always looked to buy these items at a store without necessarily going to a doctor (as in my home country doctors are relatively expensive). However, my wife will almost always go the doctor and get a prescription and buy using the prescription as the total cost under the Japanese health system it is cheaper than just buying the medicine.

  3. Ken Worsley on June 2nd, 2009 11:48 pm

    David, I think this is going to be pretty big, perhaps even a paradigm shift in the retail OTC drug industry. Drugstores such as Matsumoto Kiyoshi are in trouble. Aeon is selling some medications over 20% cheaper than drug stores, and after the first day of sales 7-11 announced they are going to expand the number of shops that have a “registered salesperson” on duty. Meanwhile, Matsumoto Kiyoshi and other drug stores are going to have to spend more to stay open longer hours, and cut their prices (if they can), which is going to hurt profit even more.

  4. David on June 8th, 2009 10:48 am

    Ken,

    Miss read the title. I was thinking of prescription drug sales. I agree it is likely to affect sales at Matsumoto Kiyoshi etc. Mind you they have been cutting more and more into supermarket sales over recent years with the range of products they offer.

  5. WG on June 13th, 2009 12:32 am

    I have to agree that this will hurt smaller firms that sell these drugs. But, the firms that take market share will be employing people at lower wages on the average. Won’t this further hurt the economy?

  6. Marco Polo on July 26th, 2009 9:35 am

    According to a Japanese TV documentary about 6 months back, which focused on some of the small businesses that were due to be hit hard by the new law, some (many?) of these companies depend on their Internet/telephone sales for survival. This is how they keep their costs low and still provide a niche product to their customers. The government is dictating the business model.

  7. Ken Worsley on July 27th, 2009 12:39 am

    The government is dictating the business model.

    Welcome to Japan.

Got something to say?