German prescription drug price rule quashed by EU court

20 October 2016

The European Court of Justice has issued a ruling that strikes against fixed prices for prescription drugs in Germany. The specific case dealt with mail-order prescriptions from the Netherlands used to treat Parkinson's, reports Deutsche Welle.

The ruling on Wednesday from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) found that a German law fixing prices of prescription drugs "constitutes an unjustified restriction of the free movement of goods" in the European Union.

The case was brought before the court by a German non-profit group that focuses on improving the lives of Parkinson's sufferers and their families. The "Deutsche Parkinson Vereinigung" had reached an agreement with a Dutch mail-order pharmacy called DocMorris, whereby the group's members benefited from a bonus system when ordering prescription-only medications.

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