A PYMNTS Company

Brazil: Gilead faces an antitrust complaint over hepatitis C pricing

By  |  October 27, 2019

Several advocacy groups have filed a complaint with antitrust authorities in Brazil, alleging pharmaceutical company Gilead charged “abusive” prices for a hepatitis C treatment and asked the government to fine the company, in addition to issuing a compulsory license so that lower-cost versions can be made available.

In their filing, the groups argue that “unlawful conduct” carried out by Gilead “clearly affects the public interest,” because the prices charged by the drug maker led the government to ration the Sovaldi medication. This purportedly contributed to nearly 6,000 deaths from the disease between 2015 and 2017, according to documents filed with CADE .

According to CADE, the study concluded that since the drug was launched in Brazil in 2015, Gilead has been systematically abusing its dominant market position, with extremely serious economic and social consequences.

Full Content: Stat News

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.