Generic drugmakers will be allowed to cooperate to supply hospital medicines for COVID-19 patients without fear of breaching the bloc’s competition rules, EU antitrust regulators said on Wednesday, April 8.
The step is the latest loosening of the bloc’s strict antitrust rules to help tackle the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The European Commission, the EU executive, has allowed EU governments to hand out subsidised loans, grants, and defer tax payments to thousands of companies.
Regulators said waiving antitrust rules for generic drugmakers, which produce the largest part of critical hospital medicines, will help to avoid shortages.
“In the current circumstances, this temporary cooperation appears indeed justifiable under EU antitrust law, in view of its objective and the safeguards put in place to avoid anti-competitive concerns,” the EU executive said in a statement.
It will provide a business document, known as a comfort letter, to industry body Medicines for Europe, giving guidance on what will be allowed.
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
DOJ and FTC Introduce Website for Reporting Anti-Competitive Healthcare Practices
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
US Congress Advances Legislation to Compel TikTok Sale
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
UK Financial Sector Advocates Enhanced Regulatory Accountability
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Google and All 50 States Defend $700 Million Consumer Settlement
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Colorado Enacts First Law to Protect Consumer Brainwave Data
Apr 18, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – China Edition – Year of the Dragon
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Review Logic and Rules for Concentrations of Undertakings that Do Not Meet the Standard of Notification
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
China’s Review of Semiconductor Transactions
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Key Challenges and Tips for Merger Control Filing in China for Listed Companies
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Key Point Review: China SPC Antitrust Judgments in 2023
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI