Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited is a multinational South African holding company for pharmaceutical concerns, and the largest drug company in Africa.
Video Aspen Pharmacare
History
After complaints of anticompetitive activities by Boehringer Ingelheim and GlaxoSmithKline in 2003, Aspen was granted licenses from the companies to create generic versions of antiretrovirals (ARV) for use in the Sub-Saharan portion of Africa. At the time, Aspen was already the largest generic medicine distributor in South Africa. Subsequent inspections by international organizations led to a rapid increase in distribution capabilities, primarily though integration with alliance partners. The company's efforts led to expanded access to affordable treatments for HIV/AIDS.
Price-gouging
Aspen has been criticised for increasing the prices of generic drugs it sells. It was fined for price-gouging in Italy where it paid $5.5m in October 2016 for its behaviour. It has been accused of the same practices, including artificially restricting supply, in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, France and Brazil. In France 3 people died after being given cyclophosphamide, an alternative drug to Aspen's melphalan which had gone up in price. An investigation is currently ongoing.
Similarly, Aspen's busulfan, a treatment for chronic myeloid leukaemia, was bought by the UK's NHS for 21p for 2mg in 2011, rising to £2.61 in 2016, a hike of 1,143%.
The Guardian newspaper has linked this activity to a rise in Aspen's share price. Between 2009 and 2016 it rose more than 650% and GSK sold its shares in Aspen earning about £1.5bn.
In May 2017, the European Commission announced it would open an investigation into Aspen's pricing practices.
Thyrax shortage in The Netherlands
January 2016, Aspen announced that due to production problems, tablets with 0.025mg Thyrax would not be available from mid-2016. Later, it was announced that this shortage would last well into 2017. People who took this medication had to switch to alternatives, which led to 30% of them experiencing side-effects because of this shift.
Maps Aspen Pharmacare
Products
As of 2007 Aspen supplied more than 650 branded medicines, specialising in generics and treatments for HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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