Apotheken

Pharmacies: the manufacture and distribution of medicinal remedies was common practice in monasteries and towns from the Middle Ages, as well as a profession often pursued by doctors (e.g. Wolfgang Kappler in Krems, 1527-1567). In the 16th century, the Estates of Lower Austria established a "Landschaftsapotheke" (country pharmacy) in each provincial region. Old pharmacies can be found in monastery hospitals, e.g. in the Elisabethine convent in Klagenfurt. In the 18th century, the pharmacy business was governed by licenses and later by laws (since the rise of the pharmaceutical industry). Under the Apothekengesetz (Law on Pharmacies) of December 18, 1906 (last amended 1998), a license must be obtained from the provincial governor in order to run a pharmacy, before which the need for a pharmacy must be determined. Only pharmacists with proof of at least 5 years of practical experience are allowed to run a pharmacy.