KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 — Seven major pharmaceutical companies are being investigated by the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) for alleged price manipulation and unethical business practises. 

They are alleged to have forced some pharmacies to buy their products at a higher price, resulting in consumers having to cough up more for medication.  

Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin said most complaints received by MyCC about the industry were on pricing and anti-competitive behaviour.

"We don’t just want to see drugs being sold (as a business) but we want to make sure they are safe and affordable,” he said at the Forum on Competition Law in the Pharmaceutical Sector here yesterday.

"We don’t want the public to bear the cost.”

Currently, there are more than 100 pharmaceutical companies in the country with a total market value of RM1.4 billion.

A source said the four common issues were differentials in pricing for different medicine dispensary systems like clinics and pharmacies, refusal to supply certain pharmacies, exclusivity to a specific pharmacy and resale price maintenance.

"They (companies) give special prices to specific groups or they don’t supply to smaller ones,” the source said.

The source added that because of these goings-on, smaller businesses struggled to stay afloat and were forced to find alternative sources for their medicines. 

Since 2012, MyCC received 272 complaints and 250 cases have been resolved so far.

MyCC chief executive officer Datuk Abu Samah Shabudin told reporters some pharmacies had complained of being discriminated against by the companies. 

"Seven companies are being investigated, all of which are registered in Malaysia. So far, most of the complaints received are on difference in pricing,” he said, declining to give further details. 

At the same forum, MyCC chairman Tan Sri Siti Norma Yaakob said new guidelines on Intellectual Property and Competition Law was being formulated and would be finalised next year.

"This would ensure effective implementation of the Competition Act 2010,” she said. 

Siti Norma said domestic players must prepare to move away from their comfort zones and prepare for a more dynamic and competitive environment as the business landscape had gone borderless.

Hamzah also said the pharmaceutical sector played an important role in global healthcare and it was essential to provide the public with affordable medication.

"It contributed an average of three per cent to the gross domestic product from 2005 to 2014,” he said.

"The sector is expected to grow at 8.2 per cent every year until 2018, through initiatives introduced under the Economic Transformation Programme.”