CMA
fines Advanz Pharma for excessive and unfair pricing
The
CMA has imposed penalties of over £100 million on Advanz Pharma for inflating the
price of thyroid tablets.
The
CMA finds that Advanz increased the price of thyroid tablet packs from £20 in
2009 to £248 in 2017, an increase of 1,110%.
The
CMA says that this fine “sends a clear message” to the pharmaceutical sector
that infringements of competition law will not be accepted.
The
practices at issue were found to be an abuse of a dominant position contrary to
the chapter II prohibition. In 2007,
Advanz developed a ‘price optimisation’ strategy whereby it de-branded certain
drugs which faced limited generic competition.
In so doing, it could remove them from the price regulation regime which
applied to branded drugs, allowing it pricing freedom.
The
CMA finds that as a result of the infringements the NHS lost out. In the year before the infringements were
implemented NHS spending was £600,000, but by 2009 this had increased to over
£2.3 million and was £30 million by 2016.
This
decision is part of the CMA's ongoing work to tackle against anti-competitive
practices in the pharmaceutical sector.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-fines-pharma-firm-over-pricing-of-crucial-thyroid-drug
No comments:
Post a Comment