The Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) has formally accused the Roche Group, including its local subsidiary Roche SA, of engaging in exclusionary practices that delayed the market entry of biosimilars for two of its anticancer medicines between 2017 and 2020.

The BCA's statement of objections highlights that Roche employed financial incentives to persuade Belgian hospitals not to conduct competitive tenders between Roche's products and the biosimilars. Additionally, Roche is accused of spreading misleading information regarding the use of biosimilars in combination therapies.

At the time of these practices, Roche was reportedly in a dominant market position concerning the active substances Rituximab and Trastuzumab, which are used to treat specific cancer types. The BCA claims that Roche's actions effectively coerced hospitals into exclusively sourcing these medicines from Roche, despite the availability of biosimilars.

The BCA concludes that Roche's strategy likely constitutes an abuse of its dominant position, violating Article IV.2 of the Code of Economic Law and Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. It is important to note that the issuance of a statement of objections does not determine the final outcome of the case, as Roche will have the opportunity to defend itself and access the investigation file to prepare its response.