Novartis, Roche, Genentech Get Joint EUR444 Million Fine From French Antitrust Authority -- Update

--Pharmaceutical companies Novartis, Roche and Genentech were fined for a total of EUR444 million by the French antitrust authority for alleged abuse of dominant position

--The authority's decision refers to practices aimed at sustaining the sales of eye-treatment drug, Lucentis

--According to the authority, the companies' conduct had the effect of reducing prescriptions of Avastin, an equally effective but much cheaper drug

By Cecilia Butini

France's antitrust authority said Wednesday that it has fined pharmaceutical companies Novartis AG, Roche Holding AG and Genentech Inc. a total of 444 million euros ($552.8 million) for abusive practices related to the marketing of an eye-disease treatment.

The authority said the three companies abused their collective dominant position with respect to the sales of Lucentis, a drug developed by Genentech laboratories to treat age-related macular degeneration, a condition which causes low vision in people over 50.

According to the French authority, the three companies' practices were aimed at curbing the use of another equally effective drug, Avastin, which costs 30 times less than Lucentis. In particular, the authority said, Novartis is supposed to have sought ways to discredit physicians' decisions to prescribe Avastin, normally used as an anticancer drug, exaggerating the risks connected to its use in ophthalmology.

All three companies are said to have engaged in obstruction and collusion to slow down authorities' initiatives to approve the off-label use of Avastin to treat age-related macular degeneration.

A spokeswoman for Roche said the company disagrees with and is disappointed by the decision made by the French competition authority, adding that Roche acted with the best interest of patients and their safety in mind, and in compliance with regulations set out by the health authorities. The company will assess next steps in the case, the spokeswoman added.

Genentech, which is a subsidiary of Roche, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Novartis didn't return a request for comment.

The EUR444 million fine comprises a EUR385.1 million penalty for Novartis and EUR59.7 million for Roche and Genentech, the competition authority said.

The antitrust regulator cited the limited competition that exists within the health-care sector, which makes the sanctioned practices "particularly serious," it said.

The regulator also mentioned the existing public debate over the effect of an expensive drug like Lucentis on the French social security system. The treatment, which costs EUR1,161 an injection, can be fully reimbursed by social security. Its counterpart Avastin, on the other hand, has a price tag of EUR30 to EUR40 an injection, according to the antitrust authority.

Write to Cecilia Butini at cecilia.butini@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 09, 2020 12:45 ET (16:45 GMT)

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