Pharmacy and freedom

The development of pharmacy in Western civilization has been influenced by ideas of individual liberty; the impact of these ideas is traced. For a short time during the French Revolution, individuals without qualifications could practice pharmacy, but abuses prompted return of regulation; from 1803, pharmacy was closely regulated by the state. Liberal thinking in 19th-century Britain left control of pharmacy mainly within the profession; regulation was definitive rather than restrictive. With the influence of Jacksonian Democracy and freedom of trade in the United States, there were no effective pharmacy regulations until the late 19th century and few educational requirements for licensure until the 1920s. In Germany, the old system of concessions and privileges was upset after World War II when any qualified pharmacist was allowed to open a shop wherever desired in the American-occupied zone; the courts upheld this policy as the basis for establishment of pharmacies in West Germany. Liberty in dispensing drugs has been limited out of concern for the well-being of individuals and of society as a whole. In Great Britain and the U.S., restrictions on dispensing antedated laws establishing qualifications for pharmacists. The history of pharmacy demonstrates that there are moral and social barriers to realization of the ideals of liberty. History also suggests that if pharmacists assume responsibilities that use their specialized training, they can defend against inroads by nonpharmacists.