Living in a small town in the Community of Madrid has more and more advantages and fewer disadvantages. From now on, residents of municipalities with less than 2,500 inhabitants in the region, which number 70 in total, will be insured … he pharmaceutical care service during the following year. A measure which will particularly benefit elderly people, who will not need to go to the nearest pharmacy, sometimes outside their municipality, to buy the medicines they need.
The Regional Executive chaired by Isabel Díaz Ayuso approves this Wednesday, in the Government Council, the signing of a collaboration agreement between the Ministry of Presidency, Justice and Local Administration and the Official College of Pharmacists of Madrid to grant 346,593 euros intended to guarantee pharmaceutical care services in the 70 municipalities with less than 2,500 inhabitants during the year 2026.
According to sources in the Community of Madrid, this agreement, a pioneer in Spain, will make it possible to subsidize the acquisition of blood pressure monitors and defibrillators, to offer pharmaceutical care at home and to facilitate the delivery of medicines. This is intended to meet the pharmacotherapeutic needs of patients, mainly elderly people or people with reduced mobility, who cannot travel from their home to the pharmacy.
In the same spirit and with an emphasis on small urban centers, the regional government has another line of aid, endowed with 700,000 euros, with a maximum amount of 10,000 for those who wish to open new rural pharmacies and up to 5,000 euros for the 27 already existing in municipalities with less than 1,000 inhabitants.
This action is part of the Pueblos con Vida program, presented in 2024, whose objective is to attract new neighbors, promote economic development and guarantee quality public services in towns with less than 20,000 inhabitants. So far, 92 percent of its measures have already been implemented.
The Pueblos con Vida regional program attempts to attract new neighbors in municipalities with less than 20,000 inhabitants
This Pueblos con Vida program is a commitment by the regional executive to revitalize the 142 municipalities with less than 20,000 inhabitants in the region, which total more than 600,000 people. The program is based on four main objectives: fix the population and attract new neighbors, promote economic development, contribute to territorial rebalancing and provide basic services to all rural communities.
Among the measures, a helpline stands out to promote commerce and hospitality in municipalities with less than 1,000 inhabitants. Currently, more than 300 establishments have the opportunity to benefit from it, whether newly created or already active businesses.
From next year, all towns in the Community of Madrid will have an ATM
In addition, the Community of Madrid will be the first region in Spain where all its municipalities will have, from next year, an ATM, after the 61 municipalities with less than 20,000 inhabitants that did not have one have joined this initiative. Most of them are in the Sierra Norte.
The regional government has also extended the network of mobile citizen service offices to all municipalities with less than 50,000 inhabitants and now reaches 155 municipalities with a total of 982,185 inhabitants. Currently, these vehicles reach populations of less than 20,000 inhabitants and with this expansion, Algete, Arroyomolinos, Ciempozuelos, Galapagar, Mejorada del Campo, Navalcarnero, Paracuellos del Jarama, San Fernando de Henares, Torrelodones and Villanueva de la Cañada will also benefit.
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