COVID-19 Crisis Impact on Pricing and Regulation Webinar

This webinar targets the most acute competition law and regulatory issues in the pharmaceutical sector in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis regarding pricing and access. The conference brings together representatives from the OECD, European Commission, Italian Competition Authority, Italian Medicines Agency, UK Competition and Consumer Agency, Danish Competition and Consumer Authority, the European Consumer Organization (BEUC) as well as leading scholars and global experts. The conference is a follow-up on a high-level conference held in Copenhagen in November 2019 targeting pricing issues in competition law and pharmaceutical market.

As the COVID-19 crisis created a surge in demand, as well as possibilities for temporary dominance for non-dominant actors, and seen against the background of many media reports on the occurrence of dramatic price hikes regarding some "essential items" such as facemasks, hand sanitisers etc., many competition authorities around the world had to come to grips with the question of excessive pricing / price gouging. 

Recent years have also brought a surge in excessive pricing cases both at the EU Commission and Member State level in Italy, UK and Denmark, targeting dramatic price hikes of off-patent pharmaceuticals.  The difference between prices, mark-ups and profit levels and their inter-relation to assessment methods employed by the CJEU and Member States has been the subject of many scholarly debates. Nevertheless, on appeal, the findings and assessment methods of competition authorities have been mostly upheld. 

The COVID-19 crisis elevated both the matter of excessive pricing / price gouging as well as the question of access and affordability regarding treatment and vaccines, which the webinar seeks to address from various perspectives. 

The conference is organized by the Center for Advanced Studies in Biomedical Innovation Law, Faculty of Law, Copenhagen University with generous grant from the Novo Nordisk Foundation. 

More info about the program: behrang.kianzad@jur.ku.dk

Information about practical matters, registration, Zoom etc.: verda.sigura@jur.ku.dk 

Participation is open to all and free of charge but registration is required.
Please use this form for registration no later than 13:00 January 26th 2021. 

Looking forward to meet you digitally!

Preliminary Program