Competition Tribunal grants Cancer Alliance participation rights in case involving alleged excessive pricing of breast cancer drug

The Competition Tribunal (“Tribunal”) has granted Cancer Alliance NPC ("Cancer Alliance”) leave to intervene as a participant in the case against Switzerland based multinational healthcare company, Roche Holdings AG and its subsidiaries F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG and Roche Products (Pty) Ltd (collectively referred to as “Roche”) over allegations of excessive pricing of a life-saving drug used in the treatment of breast cancer, which is sold in both the public and private healthcare sectors in South Africa.

 

The Competition Commission (“Commission”) alleges in its complaint referral to the Tribunal that Roche engaged in the excessive pricing of Trastuzumab, a life-saving breast cancer treatment, in contravention of sections 8(a) and 8(1)(a) of the Competition Act 89 of 1998, as amended (the “Act”).

 

The Commission’s complaint also alleges that these excessive prices constitute a violation of basic human rights, including access to healthcare, denying women with breast cancer access to life-saving medicine.

 

Cancer Alliance submitted that it has a material interest in this matter and that it is well-placed to assist the Tribunal in its determination of the matter by participating in the hearing.

 

Granted scope of intervention

 

By agreement between the parties, Cancer Alliance’s participation in the referral proceedings shall involve written and oral legal submissions within the scope of the Commission’s complaint referral (“charge sheet”), on the following issues:

 

• The harm suffered by both public and private sector patients with breast cancer as a result of the alleged excessive pricing of trastuzumab (the medicine that is the subject of the Commission’s complaint referral) during the relevant period;
• The relationship between competition and patent law, and the appropriate approach to be adopted by the Tribunal when dealing with excessive pricing referrals in respect of patented products in general, and patented medicines in particular;
• How the Tribunal ought to interpret and apply section 8 of the Act in light of the positive and negative obligations imposed on all organs of state by the constitutionally-entrenched right to have access to health care services, which includes access to medicines of proven quality, safety, and efficacy; and
• The appropriate remedy to be granted in the event the Tribunal rules that one or more of the respondents in the complaint referral have contravened the Act during the relevant period.

 

A non-confidential version of the Tribunal’s order will be made available  on the Tribunal’s website at www.comptrib.co.za.

 

 

Issued by:

Gillian de Gouveia, Communications Officer

On behalf of the Competition Tribunal of South Africa

Cell: +27 (0) 82 410 1195

E-Mail: GillianD@comptrib.co.za

Twitter: @comptrib

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