CADE and South Centre discuss competition and patent protection in the pharmaceutical industry during seminar

On 18 August, the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) and the intergovernmental organisation, South Centre, held the panel Observatório da Concorrência. The event aimed to discuss regulation, competition, and patent protection in the pharmaceutical industry. 

The event took place at CADE’s headquarters in Brasilia and brought together members of several public institutions, representatives of the pharmaceutical industry, civil servants, and lawyers to assess competition, patent protection in the sector, and access to medicines.

The Observatório da Concorrência aims to bring closer CADE and government sectors related to competition for institutional improvement.

The Deputy Chief Economist of CADE, Ricardo Medeiros, stressed the importance of cooperation between the institutionsto the benefits of society  by discussing the issue of access to medicines in relation to the competition defence and the patent rights. "This results in  medicines at lower costs and in a more agile and cohesive administration for ordinary citizens," he said.

Ricardo stated that the issue is set to be discussed with more representatives. "We need to be able to give society the answer it needs  to have cheaper, quality medicines. We are going to deepen this debate and invite other officials to further develop the issue ," he emphasised.

The representative of South Centre, Carlos Correa, compared competition law aspects in different countries, such as Brazil, the United States, and European Union countries. Correa mentions that Brazilian authorities have developed relevant projects and studies on competition law and are  experienced in the antitrust field. "We need to be able to develop our own reasoning beyond the United States and the European Union proposals," he emphasised.

Vitor Henrique Ido, another CADE’s representative, stressed that guidelines influence behaviour andprovide  legal certainty for economic agents and business relations.

According to him, the competition law applied to access to medicines is gradually growing worldwide. “It is a work in progress, institutional relations are improving and international cooperation is becoming essential for the success and continuity of these actions," he stated.

Mr Ido also listed the main difficulties in this process. He highlighted the capacity problem, power, knowledge, and data disparity between pharmaceutical companies, civil society, and authorities, as well as undue economic and political influences.

In addition to CADE and South Centre, representatives from the Brazilian Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), the Brazilian Ministry of Finance, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, and the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) participated in the seminar.