Bribes and other crimes in medicine
Main article: Crimes in medicine
2024
FAS fined companies in Primorye for cartel collusion in the supply of medical equipment to the hospital
On March 1, 2024, the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service for the Primorsky Territory announced the imposition of a fine on participants in the medical cartel. LLC Simran, LLC Poly-Trade, LLC Agat Plus and LLC Hardey entered into a conspiracy in the supply of equipment and drugs to the Vladivostok Clinical Hospital No. 4. Read more here.
FAS revealed a cartel in the supply of medical equipment for 23 million rubles to the Vladivostok hospital
The Primorsky Department of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (OFAS) of Russia revealed a cartel in the supply of medical equipment for 23.3 million rubles to the Vladivostok Clinical Hospital No. 4. The press service of the department announced this on January 10, 2024. Read more here.
2023
FAS revealed a cartel in the field of laboratory research for 1 billion rubles
The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of Russia has identified a cartel in the field of laboratory research: the total amount of contract prices may exceed 1 billion rubles. The press service of the regulator announced this on June 13, 2023. Read more here.
FAS revealed a cartel in Chelyabinsk at an auction for the supply of medical oxygen
The Chelyabinsk Office Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) Russia of Russia has established signs of anticompetitive behavior of the two companies in the purchase of medical oxygen by regional medical institutions. The press service of the department announced this on May 15, 2023. More. here
Cartel participants in the procurement of medical equipment for the Omsk Ministry of Health were fined 18 million rubles
The Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (OFAS) in the Omsk Region in March 2023 announced the imposition of working fines on cartel participants, which was created during the supply of medical products to the regional Ministry of Health. The amount of the fine amounted to 18 million rubles. Read more here.
FAS revealed a cartel in Chelyabinsk when purchasing medical equipment for 737 million rubles
In early March 2023, the FAS Russia Administration for the Chelyabinsk Region announced the identification of a cartel in the procurement of medical equipment totaling 737 million rubles. 19 companies from Chelyabinsk, Yekaterinburg, Moscow, St. Petersburg, as well as a number of other regions are suspected of concluding unacceptable "vertical" agreements. Read more here.
Initiation of a case of participation in a conspiracy in the supply of medical products for 23 million rubles
Primorsky OFAS revealed a collusion at the auction in the supply of medicines, medical equipment and consumables, as well as cleaning equipment for the needs of the Vladivostok Clinical Hospital No. 4. The department announced this on February 9, 2023. Read more here.
2022
The Ministry of Health of Chuvashia was convicted of collusion with the DRG Tekhsystems
The Commission of the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service for the Chuvash Republic (OFAS) considered the information of the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Chuvash Republic and recognized the regional Ministry of Health and ZAO DRG Tekhsystems as having violated paragraph 1 of part 1 of article 17 of the Law on Protection of Competition. The press service of the republican OFAS announced this on December 23, 2022. Read more here.
Altai court confirmed the conspiracy of suppliers of operating microscopes for 17 million rubles
At the end of October 2022, the Arbitration Court of the Altai Republic upheld the decision of the regional department of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (OFAS) to have a cartel conspiracy when supplying operating microscopes worth more than 17 million rubles. Read more here.
FAS fined cartel participants in the supply of medical equipment for 31.5 million rubles
On October 10, 2022, the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service in Primorye announced the imposition of fines on four companies, which, according to the department, participated in a cartel conspiracy in the supply of medical equipment to regional institutions. Read more here.
FAS revealed a cartel when supplying ICT equipment to medical institutions for 2 billion rubles
On September 13, 2022, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced the initiation of a case on the creation of a cartel when supplying information and communication devices to medical institutions in Russia.
The defendants in this antimonopoly case were 123 Solutions LLC, Reserch Lab LLC, ANT LLC, RIT LLC, Modern Technologies LLC and Infotactika Group of Companies LLC. The FAS suspects these companies of concluding and implementing a cartel conspiracy in order to maintain prices at more than 100 tenders for the supply of equipment.
Purchases took place for organizations, including federal executive bodies, medical institutions and other social facilities. According to preliminary estimates of the antimonopoly service, the amount of initial maximum contract prices (NMCC) is over 2 billion rubles.
If violations of antimonopoly legislation are confirmed as a result of the FAS investigation in this case, companies face administrative punishment in the amount of negotiable fines in accordance with the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.
Investigations in such cases by the FAS can take up to a year. For example, in 2020, the FAS revealed a cartel conspiracy in the Trukonf group of companies. The department closed the case on this antimonopoly violation in the fall of 2021.
Infotactika provides services in the field of construction and modernization of the IT infrastructure of enterprises and has appeared on the Russian market since 2007. The main areas are infrastructure and data centers, corporate telephone networks, and integrated security.
123 Solutions positions itself as a system integrator with experience in implementing and developing comprehensive IT solutions for automating technological and business processes.
The Reserch Lab company, judging by the information of SPARK Interfax, is engaged in the repair of computers and peripheral computer equipment. The list of additional activities includes trade in office equipment and equipment, development of computer software, IT consulting.[1]
FAS identified a cartel among suppliers of medical equipment
On August 9, 2022 Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) Russia , it announced the identification of the cartel in the medical device market. According to the regulator, the conspiracy covered 17 regions of the Russian Federation (,, Moscow Moscow,,,,,,, St. Petersburg Vologda Samara Ryazan Lipetsk Rostovskaya Tula Kemerovo, regions,, Tver ,, territories, Krasnodar Perm Khabarovsk Altai the Republic of Tatarstan and Tuva). More. here
In the Rostov region, a cartel conspiracy was revealed in the purchase of beds for hospitals
In early May 2022, the Rostov region revealed a cartel conspiracy in the purchase of beds for hospitals. It turned out that prices for medical devices were greatly overestimated. Read more here.
FAS revealed a conspiracy between the Omsk Ministry of Health and suppliers of medical equipment for 600 million rubles
On April 5, 2022, the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service for the Omsk Region announced the identification of violations committed by the Ministry of Health of the Omsk Region in the procurement of medical equipment. Read more here.
FAS revealed a cartel conspiracy at the auction for the protection of Moscow medical institutions for 516 million rubles
The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) disclosed a cartel conspiracy at the auction for the protection of medical institutions in Moscow. The press service of the department announced this in early May 2022. Read more here.
FAS fined Krasnodar supplier of medical equipment for cartel conspiracy for 10 million rubles
In mid-March 2022, the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) for the Krasnodar Territory recognized the local company Alfa-Med as a participant in the cartel conspiracy and fined it a little more than 10.5 million rubles. The supplier of medical equipment violated Part 2 of Art. 14.32 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation ("conclusion of a competition-limiting agreement"). Read more here.
The court acquitted the deputy head of the Ministry of Health of the Samara region, who was in the case of the cartel
In February 2022, the Sixth Court of Cassation lifted the ban on holding positions in state authorities from the ex-deputy head of the Ministry of Health of the Samara Region Albert Navasardyan and his former subordinate Maxim Kolobov. We are talking about a criminal case of cartel conspiracy when concluding a contract for the maintenance of medical equipment for 768 million rubles. Read more here.
In Perm, owners of medical equipment suppliers received deadlines for a cartel worth 58 million rubles
In February 2022, the Industrial District Court of Perm found two heads of medical equipment suppliers guilty of cartel conspiracy. They were convicted of restricting competition with the extraction of income on a large scale using their official position (paragraph "a" of part 2 of article 178 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). Read more here.
FAS revealed in Chuvashia cartel in the supply of mobile medical complexes for 112 million rubles
On January 12, 2022, the Directorate Federal Antimonopoly Service (OFAS) for the Chuvash Republic confirmed the existence of a cartel in the supply of mobile medical complexes in the region. The violators of paragraph 2 of part 1 of article 11 of the Law on Protection of Competition were recognized (Ideal LLC Cheboksary) and LLC "Trading House" (Vorsma Nizhny Novgorod Region). More. here
FAS fined millions of cartel participants when creating feldsher-midwife stations in Khakassia
On January 12, 2022, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced the imposition of a fine of 10.5 million rubles on participants in the cartel conspiracy (Article 14.32 of the Administrative Code) in the implementation of the national project "Healthcare" in the Republic of Khakassia.
According to the ministry, when announcing open tenders for the supply and installation of modular feldsher-obstetric points (FAP) and a medical outpatient clinic, the Capital Construction Department of the Republic of Khakassia provided conditions for their victory and artificially limited access to other participants. During an unscheduled audit, the FAS found that the department sent letters to the future winners of the tender, and the technical tasks themselves were sent by representatives of companies before the publication of auctions in the unified public procurement system.
As a result, the cost of supply and work were overestimated. The conspiracy was carried out with LLC "Aggregate" and LLC "STiM," which were fined by the antimonopoly authority. In addition to violating companies, the antimonopoly service issued fines to officials who allowed the creation of the cartel. For them, fines amounted to 100 thousand rubles each.
The FAS notes that the cartel participants tried to challenge the conclusions of the supervisory authority in court, but two instances supported the position of the FAS.
Representatives of the companies "Aggregate" and "STiM" during the consideration of the antimonopoly case denied participation in the conspiracy, referring to violations in the FAS order to conduct an unscheduled audit, and also denied the presence of damage as a result of the conspiracy. In addition, the companies believed that filing bids for an auction from one IP address was not evidence of cartel collusion. The Capital Construction Department of the Republic of Khakassia did not dispute the existence of the agreement during the consideration of the case.[2]
2021
Members of the cartel that deceived Perm hospitals for 58 million rubles received deadlines
In December 2021, the Industrial Court of Perm sentenced two cartel participants in the medical device market to 1.5 years of suspended imprisonment. They were found guilty of paragraph "a" part 2 of Art. 178 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation "Restriction of competition."
According to Kommersant, citing the press service of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Perm Territory, the defendants in the case, being the founders and heads of competing firms, entered into an agreement prohibited by the antimonopoly legislation of the Russian Federation in the period from 2016 to 2019 in order to make a profit. It was expressed in maintaining prices at tenders for the purchase of goods and services for urban medical institutions, mandatory awareness of each other's future actions, a unified model of behavior and synchrony during auctions.
The customers at the auction were the Perm Regional Oncological Dispensary, the Regional Clinical Skin and Venereological Dispensary, the Clinical Phthisiopulmonological Medical Center, the medical sanitary station No. 11, the Regional Children's Clinical Hospital, City Hospital No. 10, Medical Sanitary Station No. 7, City Clinical Hospital No. 4.
According to the investigation, companies applied for participation in auctions with a difference from several minutes to several hours from identical IP addresses, and files with applications were created and saved by the same person on the same computer. Purchases were financed with subsidies for the fulfillment of the municipal task. As a result, according to the results of 29 procurement procedures, the defendants achieved the conclusion of municipal contracts in the amount of over 58 million rubles.
According to the Ura.ru agency, judging by the case card on the court's website, Veronika Konovalova and Denis Stepanov were convicted under the article of the Criminal Code on "Restriction of Competition" in December 2021. Both are CEOs of companies that are involved in the wholesale of pharmaceutical products and the manufacture and sale of medical instruments and equipment.[3]
FAS revealed a cartel conspiracy in the Nizhny Novgorod region when supplying blood pressure monitors for millions
In December 2021, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced the identification of a cartel conspiracy in the supply of medical devices in the Nizhny Novgorod region. According to the ministry, IstraMed LLC, Telemedics LLC, Volga Medical Technology LLC and Petr Telegin LLC supported prices during competitive procedures. Read more here.
Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation: Cartel collusion for the supply of cancer drugs revealed in a third of the regions
According to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation, by mid-November 2021, cartel collusion for the supply of drugs for cancer patients was revealed in every third Russian region.
 | In pursuance of the instructions of the head of state, in cooperation with the FAS, the FSB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and Rosfinmonitoring, inspections of drug procurement schemes continued. As a result, in a third of the regions, the facts of cartel collusion in the supply of drugs for patients with cancer have been established, - said the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation Igor Krasnov at a government hour in the State Duma. At the same time, he did not specify the region. |  |
According to the Prosecutor General, in Karelia, Sevastopol, as well as in Vladimir, Kursk, Novgorod and Oryol regions, prosecutors "took tough measures" due to the untimely provision of drugs for people with disabilities or the complete absence of the necessary drugs. Igor Krasnov noted that this situation was often caused by "red tape of officials and violations during procurement procedures."
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the FAS, together with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the FSB and the Prosecutor General's Office, to develop an interdepartmental program to identify and suppress the activities of cartels and, if necessary, create an appropriate interdepartmental coordination body.
2020: Initiation of 35 criminal cases on cartel collusion in the pharmaceutical market
In July 2020, the FAS reported that in the first half of that year, the regulator opened 35 cases of cartel collusion in the pharmaceutical market, while for the same period in 2019 there were fewer - 32. The increase in the number of collusion contributed to the rush demand for pharmaceutical products due to the spread of coronavirus infection.
| | The trend to reduce collusion, which we recorded in 2019, has come to naught, and the number of cases in pharmaceuticals has increased. The problems of the pandemic spurred the number of collusion in this market, everyone rushed to sell, often in violation of the law and conspiring to raise prices, - said the then head of the Anti-Cartel Department of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of Russia Andrei Tenishev.[4] | |
Notes
- ↑ FAS Russia opened a case of violation of antimonopoly legislation * against 123 Solutions LLC
- ↑ FAS FINED 10.5 MILLION RUBLES FOR PARTICIPANTS IN COLLUSION AT TENDERS WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE NATIONAL PROJECT "HEALTHCARE"
- ↑ Members of the trade cartel in the supply of medical goods sentenced to suspended sentences
- ↑ Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation: Cartel collusion for the supply of cancer drugs revealed in a third of the regions
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