Competition Council investigates Philips Romania for possible illegal agreements
The Competition Council recently announced the launch of an official investigation targeting Philips Romania and ten of its authorized distributors. The authorities suspect the existence of a possible cartel-type agreement, which allegedly aimed to coordinate bids submitted in public tenders for medical equipment intended for hospitals across the country.
According to information provided by the regulatory authority, the investigation was initiated following suspicions regarding the manipulation of procurement procedures. It is suspected that the involved companies coordinated their commercial strategies to limit competition, which would have led to higher prices for medical equipment purchased with public funds.
As part of this action, inspectors from the Competition Council carried out unannounced inspections at the headquarters of the targeted companies. The documents and data collected during these checks are now being analyzed to determine whether fair competition rules were violated and whether the budgets of healthcare units were affected.
Representatives of the Competition Council emphasized that such practices are extremely serious, as they can limit hospitals' access to high-performance equipment at fair prices. If it is proven that an illegal agreement existed, the companies involved face significant fines, which can reach a substantial percentage of their turnover.
The investigation is currently ongoing, and the final results will be communicated to the public after all legal procedures are completed. Until the investigation is finalized, the targeted companies benefit from the presumption of innocence, but the case remains of great interest to the public health system in Romania.