Belgium’s competition authority has fined pharmaceutical company Novartis 2.78 million euros for abuse of a dominant position, the antitrust authority said in a press release.

The case centers on Novartis’ drug Lucentis and another, cheaper competing drug, Avastin, and their use by ophthalmologists to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Novartis continued to falsely warn about the risks associated with the use of Roche’s drug Avastin, which was originally an anti-cancer drug but was found to be just as effective against retinal diseases (so-called off-label use).

The facts date back to 2013-2015. The Swiss company Novartis allegedly abused its dominant position together with another Swiss pharmaceutical company, Roche. However, Roche was not fined.

Novartis was accused of misleading ophthalmologists, hospitals and government authorities by warning against the off-label use of Roche’s oncology drug Avastin instead of its own, more expensive Lucentis product, which, unlike Avastin, is indicated specifically for the treatment macular degeneration.

According to Belgium’s competition authority, Novartis continued to warn ophthalmologists, hospitals and regulators about the risks of off-label use of Avastin even after studies were published that no longer allowed it. Therefore, the Belgian market surveillance authority recognized these messages as misleading, as this type of message is classified by the case law of the European Court of Justice.

In France, Novartis and Roche were fined €444 million in 2020 for the same actions by the French competition authority. At the time, it was the largest fine in the French pharmaceutical sector. Italy has previously fined two companies a total of 182.5 million euros, and ironically, not only the drugs, but also the market’s treatments are eye-wateringly expensive.

The Belgian case was based on a complaint filed with the Belgian Competition Authority in late 2014 by Test Achats, a consumer protection association. The review of the complaint lasted much longer than in France and Italy. According to the Belgian Competition Authority, this is partly because the investigation has been suspended pending the Court’s decision.

N. Ed: Kalu Monika is a lawyer specializing in consumer law with more than ten years of experience in this field. She specializes in protecting the rights of consumers of financial services, and her field of competence includes banking contracts, insurance contracts, regulation of the rights of consumers of financial services in national legislation and legislation of the European Union. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in economics. She is the founder and president of the United Consumers Association and a member of the Banking Stakeholder Group (BSG) of the European Banking Authority (EBA) and the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholder Group (IRSG) of the European Occupational Insurance and Pensions Authority (EIOPA). ), representing consumers. He is an independent member of the international public organization Finance Watch.