A pharmaceutical wholesaler has been fined €29.8 million by Belgium's competition watchdog for price-fixing, which is in breach of competition law.
Following an investigation that first began in 2016, the Belgian Competition Authority (BMA), found that three companies participated in a cartel in breach of Belgian and European competition rules.
Pharmaceutical wholesaler Pharma-Belgium-Belmedis has to pay a fine for prohibited market agreements, while the largest company, Febelco, dodged a fine, as it revealed the facts. The fine could have been 40% higher, but as Pharma Belgium-Belmedis provided additional information about the price manipulations, the cost was reduced.
The smallest company that was found guilty, the French business Cerp, has refused to accept a settlement with the auditor and has instead opted for a court procedurea.
Violations of the law
Between April 2003 and 2016, Febelco and Pharma Belgium-Belmedis agreed to apply the same, less attractive, commercial conditions on flu vaccines.
Every year, customers of pharmaceutical wholesalers, including pharmacists, can order a certain quantity of vaccines for a certain period of time through a system of pre-sales before they are marketed.
The companies agreed on a presale system, resulting in pharmacists not receiving any discounts and the return of unsold vaccines not being accepted.
They also acted in breach of the law regarding "transfer orders," a system allowing pharmaceutical laboratories to offer pharmacists the possibility of ordering large quantities of products directly from them. In this case, the wholesaler prepares and executes the order.
Febelco and Pharma Belgium-Belmedis agreed to apply the same tariffs to pharmaceutical laboratories and to offer services with identical content to limit direct sales by pharmaceutical laboratories to pharmacists and to establish their margin within the framework of the distribution of products by transfer orders.
