* Fines relate to arrangements to prevent rival launch
* CMA says prochlorperazine price jumped 700% in 4 years
* Alliance, Advanz to appeal CMA decision
(Adds Advanz statement, background)
By Pushkala Aripaka and Priyanshi Mandhan
Feb 3 (Reuters) - Britain's competition watchdog on Thursday
fined five firms a total of 35 million pounds ($47.5 million)
for impeding competition in the supply of some anti-nausea pills
to the state health service.
The firms, which include Alliance Pharma and
private-equity group Cinven, paid a competitor to cancel the
launch of a rival prochlorperazine product, the UK Competition
and Markets Authority (CMA) said https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-fines-firms-over-35m-for-illegal-arrangement-for-nhs-drug.
That led to a 700% surge between 2013 and 2017 in the price
that the National Health Service was forced to pay for the drug,
which is used to treat nausea, dizziness and migraines, it
added.
"The size of the fines reflects the seriousness of this
breach... We will not hesitate to take action like this against
any businesses that collude at the expense of the NHS," CMA
chief executive Andrea Coscelli said.
Between 2014 and 2018, the annual NHS costs for
prochlorperazine increased from around 2.7 million pounds to
roughly 7.5 million pounds while the number of packs dispensed
to it fell, the CMA said.
Thursday's fine comprised 7.9 million pounds for Alliance,
7.3 million for Lexon, 4.6 million for Medreich and 15.5 million
between Advanz and Cinven.
In separate statements, Alliance and Advanz both said they
would appeal. The other companies did not immediately respond to
Reuters' request for comment.
Last July the CMA fined more than 10 drug firms a record https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/britain-fines-drugmakers-360-million-overcharging-nhs-2021-07-15
260 million pounds for overcharging the NHS for a steroid whose
prices jumped 10,000% in under eight years.
($1 = 0.7378 pounds)
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka and Priyanshi Mandhan in
Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Arun Koyyur and
John Stonestreet)
Alliance Pharma (APH)
