Healthy Skepticism Library item: 12373

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: news

Germany: Regulator Issues Pharma Fines
Namnews 2008 Jan 11
http://www.kamcity.com/namnews/asp/newsarticle.asp?newsid=38392

Full text:

The German cartel office has issued total fines of E465,000 to various bodies in the country’s pharmaceutical industry, after finding the guilty of holding price agreements following the abolition of price-fixing on non-prescription medication in 2004, in a bid to reduce competition over prices.

The office fined the German association for medicine producers, five pharmaceutical companies, nine regional chemists’ associations and eight drugstores from Hildesheim. The companies affected include Bayer Vital and Boehringer Ingelheim. The regulator said price-fixing talks were held in 24 German cities, which called for the sector to propose that drugstores avoid competition over prices and stick to manufacturers’ price recommendations.

The office said that the fine levied is sufficient, as the price agreements were held several years ago when competition within the sector was first opening up. It said it assumes that such action will not be repeated again.