Following our practice of supporting current and potential clients at all stages of their activity in Ukraine, we would like to draw your attention to the following:
- The practice of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (hereinafter the AMCU) in the medicinal products market;
- Current news in the area of competition protection.
AMCU's Activities. Results And Plans
At the web conference of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine dedicated to the results of 2012, Vasyl Tsushko said that AMCU had enhanced its work in all areas. Thus, in 2012 AMCU authorities examined more than 6.5 thousand applications about competition violations. This is 37% more than in 2011.
According to preliminary information, the amount of fines imposed in 2012 was in excess of UAH 687 million, which was 9 times more than in 2011.
An important development in the field of state regulation of competition is the newly adopted concept of the State Program of Competition Development for 2014-2024.
AMCU's website reported that 1075 inspections of business entities and government bodies for compliance with competition law are going to be held in 2013.
AMCU's attention will be focused on the study of medicinal product markets. Vasil Tsushko noted that AMCU's task in hand is to study the competition state in the mentioned market and to provide appropriate proposals to the government.
According to AMCU's plans, the total number of investigations can be no less than 600 cases, while the expected number of recommendations for infringements' terminations 1010. In addition, AMCU intends to handle 730 merger applications and 65 applications for concerted actions of participants in different markets.
Besides, AMCU's report states that its experts are going to discuss 2100 draft legal acts on competition during 2013 and to issue 2800 proposals to promote competition in different markets.
In 2012, AMCU's experts conducted more than 500 investigations into different markets and have started investigation in new areas, namely large-scale investigations into retailers' activities, fish and seafood markets, and medicinal products circulation.
In the last week of December, AMCU fined 20 companies a total of USD 1.4 million for failure to provide information at the Committee's request.
Medicinal Product Market Operators Obliged Not To Raise Prices
In late 2012, AMCU recommended the stakeholders in the medicinal products market to refrain from actions that could cause an economically unjustified price increase or supply shortage.
The recommendations were provided in order to prevent competition violations in the mentioned markets, especially during periods of excessive demand for medicines due to increased influenza and ARVI incidence rates.
According to Article 46 of the Law of Ukraine "On Protection of Economic Competition" such recommendations are subject to mandatory review by bodies or persons to whom they are addressed. Having received such recommendations, an entity shall, within 10 days, report on the results of their consideration to AMCU or its territorial office, unless AMCU extends the above term.
ANTICOMPETITIVE ACTIONS OF STATE AUTHORITIES
AMCU Stands For The Expansion Of Cord Blood Banking Market
AMCU recommended that the State Service of Ukraine on Combating HIV-Infection/AIDS and Other Socially Dangerous Diseases shall stop actions showing signs of competition law violation. In particular, the above State Service should take steps to prevent the undue decision-making on providing or denying a license, or shelving license applications for doing business in cord blood or other human tissues/cells banking. AMCU found that, since 2011, the State Social Diseases Service issued the mentioned licenses only to two entities.
Other entities were removed from that market due to the State Service's omission.
According to some cord blood banking market participants, about 100 entities may be potential players in the same market.
Thus, the activities of the State Social Diseases Service caused restriction of competition in the above market.
AMCU Accused The Ministry Of Health Of Unlawful Anticompetitive Actions In The Market For Training Drivers' Medical Examiners
The Committee found that the Ministry of Health artificially restricted competition in the market for training medical specialists who, after a course of training, were allowed to perform medical examinations of drivers.
As shown by investigation, the procedure that existed before January 2010 provided for specified training at addiction treatment clinics. Later, the procedure was canceled by the joint order of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The same order determined that the duty to arrange the training process was shifted into competence of the State Enterprise "Ukrainian Medical Center of Road Safety and Information Technology" of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
Those were precisely the actions that the Committee considered as breach of competition law.
As we can see, AMCU has become more active in applying the provisions of Article 15 of the Law of Ukraine "On Protection of Economic Competition" which states that the anticompetitive actions of state authorities, local self-governments or administrative and economic management and control bodies are prohibited and punishable as provided by law. According to AMCU's representatives, the latter's practice in the same area will be developed further.
AMCU's Practice
Informational violations
A number of companies were fined in December 2012 for failure to provide information at AMCU's request within the set term:
- Apteka Biokon" LLC (Kyiv) UAH 5 thousand;
- "Krym-Pharm-Trading" LLC (Simferopol) UAH 25 thousand;
- "Eridan" PE (Kyiv) UAH 264 thousand;
- "Venta LTD" LLC (Dnipropetrovsk) UAH 150 thousand;
- "KA-O-EM" PME (Cherkasy) UAH 5 thousand;
- "Deltamedpharm" LLC (Odesa) UAH 1 thousand;
- "Best Pharm" PE (Kyiv) UAH 1 thousand;
- "Nashe Nasledie" PE (Donetsk) UAH 500 thousand.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
