Vaccination as a pharmacy service: where it stands in Berlin

Since 2 July 2026 pharmacies may vaccinate adults with any inactivated vaccine. Before that it was flu and COVID-19.

What changed

The Apothekenversorgung-Weiterentwicklungsgesetz appeared in the Bundesgesetzblatt on 1 July 2026 and came into force the next day. It allows trained pharmacists to give every vaccination with an inactivated vaccine to people aged 18 and over (§ 20c(1) sentence 1 no. 3 IfSG). Live vaccines remain with doctors’ practices, and the earlier COVID-19 exception from the age of 12 has gone.

Training still stands between permission and practice. The Bundesapothekerkammer and the Bundesärztekammer are drawing up model curricula for it; § 20c(3) IfSG sets 2 September 2026 as the date. For flu and COVID-19 the curriculum already exists, for the newly added vaccinations it was still being agreed in August 2026.

The extension is a permission, not an obligation. Whether a pharmacy vaccinates is its own decision, and it can restrict itself to particular vaccinations.

Which vaccinations come into question

We cover ten. The selection follows what a pharmacy realistically offers; each linked page shows what patients search for on the subject.

• Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)
• Flu
• COVID-19
• Tetanus / Diphtheria / Whooping cough / Polio
• Hepatitis A / Hepatitis B
• Pneumococcal disease
• RSV
• Shingles
• Meningococcal B
• Meningococcal ACWY

What a pharmacy needs for it

Five subjects, each with its own effort.

Training

§ 20c(1) sentence 1 no. 1 IfSG requires training by a physician with confirmed successful participation. Subsection 2 names the content: administering the vaccination, the consultation, patient history, knowledge of contraindications, and emergency measures for reactions.

For flu and COVID-19 the curriculum of the Bundesapothekerkammer and the Bundesärztekammer already exists: by the ABDA’s account, 14 teaching units of 45 minutes with self-study, a practical part and proof of first-aid training. For the newly added vaccinations it is being agreed; § 20c(3) IfSG sets 2 September 2026.

Anyone already trained does not start over. Whoever completed the training that applied until 1 July 2026 may vaccinate against flu and COVID-19 without further training; for the remaining inactivated vaccines a supplement is added.

Premises

A suitable room with a waiting area and the necessary equipment. The requirements for the Raumeinheit under § 4(1) sentence 2 no. 5 ApBetrO expressly do not apply: the vaccination room need not be part of the business premises within the meaning of that provision.

Floors and surfaces have to be wet-cleanable and disinfectable, and a hygiene plan belongs with them. What your supervisory authority requires beyond that is settled with them; the federal states handle it differently.

Emergency readiness

The room has to allow immediate measures in the event of a reaction, with the corresponding equipment and a written emergency plan. The emergency medicines belong in the same room, not in the dispensary.

Consultation and documentation

§ 22 IfSG governs the record: without delay, in the vaccination record or, where none is presented, in a vaccination certificate. It holds the name and date of birth of the vaccinated person along with the name and address of the person responsible for the vaccination, and their confirmation.

A suspected health injury going beyond the usual extent of a reaction is reportable by name to the Gesundheitsamt under § 6(1) no. 3 IfSG.

Who besides the pharmacist may vaccinate

Under § 20c(4) IfSG, administering the vaccine can be delegated to pharmaceutical technical assistants, pharmaceutical engineers and trainees, under supervision and with training of their own. The consultation, the patient history and the documentation stay with the pharmacist.

What it brings in

Part of the remuneration is not yet finally settled. We therefore give no figure. What belongs in an honest calculation:

• the fee per vaccination: settled by contract, not fixed in statute
• the purchase price of the vaccine and the retax risk
• staff time tied up — the consultation, the vaccination and the observation period together, not only the injection
• waste: opened or expired stock when there are too few appointments
• the one-off effort for training and equipment

Only once those five items stand can anyone say whether it is worth it for your pharmacy. A round figure from us would be worthless in the first conversation with your chamber.

The real bottleneck is organisation

You cannot vaccinate between two customers at the counter. Whoever offers it needs fixed times with somebody freed up for them, and then appointments that fill those times without anybody sitting on the phone.

How a pharmacy gets listed here and takes bookings online is under list your pharmacy.