14 Septembrie 2009
Competition Council opens new probes against four drug companies
Competition Council opened four new investigations into alleged violation of national antitrust laws in the drug wholesale industry. The companies under probe are Bayer Romania, Baxter Romania, Belupo Pharmaceutical & Cosmetics Romania and Sintofarm.
The authority’s examination will focus on an alleged collusion and price-fixing by drug makers and their distributors. The four companies under probe are:
- Bayer SRL, Romanian company, fully-owned subsidiary of Buyer group, direct importer of Bayer Consumer Care;
- Baxter AG, fully-owned subsidiary of Swiss-based Baxter, manufacturer of medicines for treatment of hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney diseases, trauma etc.;
- Belupo Pharmaceutical & Cosmetics d.d., wholesaler of medicine for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and medicine with the impact to the skin. It is the second large pharmaceutical company in Croatia.
- Sintofarm SA, Romanian manufacturer of generic drugs for the central nervous system and musculoskeletal system.
“Pharmaceutical market is a priority for the Competition Council. We will intervene whenever needed to restore a fair competitive environment, to enable access to competitive prices to all consumers”, said Bogdan Chiritoiu, chairman of Competition Council.
Competition Council can sanction companies for infringement of the competition law with fines up to 10% of their turnover. However, companies under leniency program can obtain fine-exempt status or substantial reduction in fines.
- Bayer SRL, Romanian company, fully-owned subsidiary of Buyer group, direct importer of Bayer Consumer Care;
- Baxter AG, fully-owned subsidiary of Swiss-based Baxter, manufacturer of medicines for treatment of hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney diseases, trauma etc.;
- Belupo Pharmaceutical & Cosmetics d.d., wholesaler of medicine for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and medicine with the impact to the skin. It is the second large pharmaceutical company in Croatia.
- Sintofarm SA, Romanian manufacturer of generic drugs for the central nervous system and musculoskeletal system.
“Pharmaceutical market is a priority for the Competition Council. We will intervene whenever needed to restore a fair competitive environment, to enable access to competitive prices to all consumers”, said Bogdan Chiritoiu, chairman of Competition Council.
Competition Council can sanction companies for infringement of the competition law with fines up to 10% of their turnover. However, companies under leniency program can obtain fine-exempt status or substantial reduction in fines.