Britain’s NHS is set to be paid £23 million by Vifor Pharma following a probe by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) into potential misinformation.
Intravenous iron deficiency treatment maker Vifor offered the payment on the back of the probe into whether it had spread misinformation to doctors about rival products, the watchdog said.
Vifor had also agreed to inform healthcare professionals of potential misinformation relating to its treatment, Ferinject, or Pharmacosmos’ Monofer product.
“Pharmaceutical companies must think carefully when making claims about competitors,” CMA competition enforcement executive director Juliette Enser said.
“These can have real impact on the doctors and nurses making potentially life-changing decisions about treatment and, of course, on the patients themselves.”
Vifor would not face a decision by the CMA over whether it broke competition law as a result of the deal, with the case marking the watchdog’s first over misleading claims under such enforcement powers.