IN THE ROSTOV REGION THE PRICE OF CHLORHEXIDINE HAS UNREASONABLY INCREASED BY ALMOST 9 TIMES

On May 21, 2020, the Rostov Regional Office of the FAS Russia  initiated a case involving  LLC “Biopharma”, LLC “Company “Organika”, and LLC “Social pharmacy 6”, which concluded an anti-competitive agreement when selling the disinfectant.

According to numerous complaints of citizens of the Rostov Region on a sharp increase in the price of the disinfectant “Chlorhexidini bigluconas 0,05%”, the Antimonopoly authority in the course of inspections  found out that in the pharmacy  of LLC “Social pharmacy 6” the disinfectant was sold at a price of 129 rubles, when the manufacturer's selling price was 14,40 rubles.

The Rostov Regional Office of the FAS Russia has found signs of an anti-competitive agreement between the pharmacy and the suppliers of the disinfectant – LLC "Biopharma" and LLC "Company "Organika". The collusion of organizations led to such an increase in the price of goods in the context of the pandemic.

"As you can see, the cost of production of chlorhexidine has not increased. Because of such unacceptable agreements between the companies, consumers are forced to overpay for essential goods in the conditions of a pandemic. Companies face a fine of up to 5% of revenue in the market where the offense was committed. On the instructions of the FAS Russia, other Regional Offices are also conducting investigations on possible price collusions for disinfectants", said Andrey Tenishev, Head of the Anti-Cartel Department of the FAS Russia.