The original CMA investigation found that Pfizer and Flynn’s illegal behaviour led to NHS annual costs for phenytoin capsules rising from £2 million in 2012 to around £50 million in 2013
The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has imposed a total fine of £69m on pharmaceutical manufacturers Pfizer and Flynn Pharma for “charging excessive prices” for the life-saving epilepsy drug, phenytoin sodium capsules, between 2012 and 2016.
The tribunal ruled that both companies had intentionally abused their dominant positions in the market and were “gouging the market in a manner that can only be characterised as unjustifiable or opportunistic or – in a word – unfair.”
The fine imposed by the CAT is almost identical to the levels set earlier by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
Following a remittal from the CAT, the CMA reassessed its case and in 2022 imposed fines of approximately £70 million on Pfizer and Flynn, totaling £63.3 million and £6.7 million respectively, for breaching competition law.
In a statement, the CMA said that while it “agrees with the CAT’s conclusion that the firms’ pricing behaviour was abusive under competition law, and that significant fines are appropriate in this case,” it disagrees with the tribunal’s findings and reasoning regarding its decision.
The CMA added that it is “carefully considering whether to appeal the judgment.”
Overview of the case
The original CMA investigation in 2016 found that Pfizer and its distributor Flynn had increased the price for phenytoin capsules by 2,300–2,600%, causing annual NHS costs to rise from £2m in 2012 to around £50 million in 2013 Read More….
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