Enrique Ayuso, president of the Cooperative Hefame, on 13 October 2026 in Murcia made a case for protecting Spain’s pharmacy model. At an event organised by Observatorio de la Sanidad by El Español he said that the recent expansion of foreign groups with new management models was putting pressure on owner-operated pharmacies and could weaken provision in smaller towns.
Ayuso justified his position by pointing to the dense network of local pharmacies, which, he said, is based on ownership rules, professional independence and cooperative structures. In his view, the growing market power of vertically integrated or well-capitalised providers risks shifting demand and investment to large sites, while weakening the stability of outlying areas. He argued that pharmacies should be safeguarded as an accessible first point of contact in the health service. The statements are attributed to Ayuso; no official announcements of legislative changes had been made by Tuesday.
In response to competitive pressure, Ayuso advocated cooperation and efficiency rather than protectionism. He cited stronger cooperative alliances, shared logistics, joint purchasing strategies and digital tools for stock and demand management as ways forward. According to Hefame, projects are under way to optimise distribution and use artificial intelligence for demand forecasting, with the aim of improving supply reliability and cost transparency. These claims come from the cooperative.
The debate over ownership rules and the competitive framework for pharmacies is present in Spain recurs regularly. It is currently being fuelled anew by higher energy and transport costs, as well as by the investment strategies of international groups. Whether this leads to political initiatives at national or European level remains uncertain and will depend on future market and legal developments. No forecasts are available.
Hefame is a pharmaceutical distribution cooperative based in the Region of Murcia. It supplies pharmacies in several parts of Spain and promotes cooperative solutions across the supply chain. The positions now put forward by Ayuso concern the nationwide structure of provision; the occasion was a panel discussion in Murcia. The speech was documented by Europa Press. No independent responses from authorities or industry regulators to the statements had been reported by the time of publication.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).