I726 – FLU VACCINE
PRESS RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
FLU VACCINES: ANTITRUST LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION INTO POSSIBLE COMPETITION-RESTRICTING AGREEMENT BETWEEN SOLVAY PHARMA AND SANOFI PASTEUR MSD
Investigatory proceeding to determine whether these companies collaborated to rig the AL ASL's (Region of Piedmont) call for proposals for ‘common flu’ vaccinations
On December 16th, 2009, the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato decided to launch an investigatory proceeding to determine whether Solvay Pharma S.p.A. and Sanofi Pasteur Msd S.p.A. set up a competition-restricting agreement in the sector of vaccines for the ‘common’ flu. The specific issue in question is whether or not these two companies collaborated with the intent to limit competition and retain their newly-acquired market positions over time by rigging the results of an AL ASL (Region of Piedmont) call for proposals for the provision of anti-flu drugs.
Announced today during joint inspections with Special Units of the Guardia di Finanza, the need for the proceeding was signaled last week when information was received about this Piedmont ASL’s September 2009 call for proposals for the 2009-2010 vaccination campaign.
While 9 different companies were invited to submit proposals for the largest lot (96,000 doses), only two - Solvay Pharma S.p.A. and Sanofi Pasteur Msd - actually submitted proposals, which were rejected for being too high relative to the initial asking price. Given the pressing need to proceed with actual administration of the anti-flu vaccine, the ASL raised the starting price for a subsequent call for proposals and ended up awarding the contract to Sanofi Pasteur Msd, the only company to make a bid.
The Antitrust Authority has not ruled out the possibility that this incident may reflect more widespread coordination between these two companies on a regional or national scale.
Rome – December 22nd, 2009