Pharma firms abused dominant position, says watchdog

Penalties and confiscation of illegal gains totaling more than 1.2 billion yuan (US$168 million) have been imposed on four pharmaceutical companies for violating China's anti-monopoly law, Shanghai's market watchdog revealed on Friday.

The firms – SPH No.1 Biochemical and Pharmaceutical Co, Wuhan Huihai Medicine Technology Development Co, Wuhan Healthcode Pharmaceuticals Co, and Hubei Minkang Pharmaceutical Co – were found to have abused their dominant position on the Chinese market for polymyxin B sulfate for injection to sell the preparation at unfair high prices for profit, according to the Shanghai Administration for Market Regulation.

The sulfate is used to treat urinary tract infection, meningitis, sepsis, burn infection and skin and mucosal infection resulting from the infection of sensitive bacteria and pseudomonas aeruginosa.