Date filed
18 July 2006
Keywords
Countries of harm
Current status
Rejected
Sector
NCP

Allegations

Ratiopharm, a pharmaceuticals company and major producer of generic drugs, has allegedly engaged in unethical marketing practices, including bribing doctors and pharmacists in Belgium, Canada, Spain, Estonia and Germany.

Relevant OECD Guidelines

Outcome

In December 2006, the German NCP rejected the second complaint against Ratiopharm. The NCP argued that the complaint would had to be dealt with by the NCP of the country where the alleged misbehaviour occurred, i.e. Belgium, Canada, Estonia, and Spain.

Transparency International and the NCP met informally in March 2007. Again, the NCP insisted it could not accept the Ratiopharm case and refused to forward it to the relevant NCPs. The NCP claimed its “hands were tied”.

Transparency International maintains that the alleged misbehaviour emanates from Ratiopharm’s German headquarters to other countries. Therefore, the German NCP should take the lead in handling the complaint. In addition, the NCP’s refusal to forward the case to the other relevant NCPs inspires little faith in the NCP’s offer to assist informally.

More details

Defendant
Company in violation
Complainants
Affected people
Date rejected / concluded
1 December 2007

Related complaints

Documents