Peru: Minsa reveals four cases of drug price fixing

Peru’s Health Minister, Silvia Pessah, after announcing the first case of price-fixing agreements for the public purchase of medicines in Peru, has now also revealed that three other similar cases have been identified, which have already been notified to the corresponding authority.

Price manipulation was detected in several products, whose prices for the State appear to have risen significantly and without justification. In one example, Pessah details that a surcharge of over 10 times was discovered for a drug when compared with prices in commercial pharmacies.

As a measure, Pessah also announced that the Ministry of Health (MINSA) would stop buying some of the affected medications, launching a new round of contracts to ensure fair prices. Affected medications include gastrointestinal and cardiovascular treatments, and some used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. As it is an ongoing investigation, the names of the companies or individuals involved have not been revealed.