Pharmaceutical companies are protesting a U.K. government decision on drug pricing that their lobbying group says may prompt more of them to scale back operations in Britain.
The Department of Health told drugmakers May 19 it was ending a deal that allowed some of them to increase prices to make up for money they lost when a previous agreement was suspended in 2007. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry objected to both the decision on the accord, known as the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, and the refusal to share information showing how it was reached.
Switzerland’s Novartis AG (NOVN) and New York-based Pfizer Inc. (PFE), two of the world’s biggest drugmakers, said this year they plan to scale back U.K. operations. Prime Minister David Cameron said in January he personally called the heads of pharmaceutical companies to urge them to continue investing, pointing to tax breaks he was offering. The ABPI said the Department of Health’s move undermined that effort at a time when the government aims to replace the 54-year-old drug-pricing system.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Drug-Price Decision Threatens U.K. Investment, Industry Says - Bloomberg
via bloomberg.com
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1 comment:
A move, that can cause lots of job loss in the country.
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