(Towards?) Pharmaceutical Accountability

Together with a group of attorneys , doctors, and researchers , Prof Brigit Toebes is engaged in a project investigating the legal questions surrounding the (high) price of medicines and the responsibilities of manufacturers in this regard. Prof. Brigit Toebes and others have founded the Pharmaceutical Accountability Foundation ( “Stichting Farma ter Verantwoording” in Dutch, see below) to respond to the current debate in society about the unacceptability of high drug prices and the potential societal responsibility of the pharmaceutical industry. The research involves EU competition law, tort law and human rights law and it investigates whether the high price of the drug concerned violates these legal standards. For more information please contact Prof Brigit Toebes ( b.c.a.toebes rug.nl ) or Jan-Koen Sluijs (Coupry).

Further information can be found on the Dutch Foundation Stichting Farma ter Verantwoording.

Student law clinic:

The project also facilitates a law clinic for students. Students interested in this project can contact Prof Brigit Toebes at b.c.a.toebes rug.nl .

About the Pharmaceutical Accountability Foundation

The Pharmaceutical Accountability Foundation (est. 2018, “Stichting Farma ter Verantwoording” in Dutch) aims to promote a society in which medicines and other medical technologies are available on the market in a sustainable and socially acceptable manner, in which context the foundation attaches value to fair pricing and distribution that is in line with written and unwritten national, European and international legal norms.

The Foundation uses legal procedures against pharmaceutical companies that demand excessive prices for medicines, which consequently become unaffordable to patients and/or the health care system.

The Foundation’s first case concerned chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), a simple bile acid used for the treatment of a rare disease Cerebrotendinous Xanthomatosis (CTX) and of which the price was increased 500-fold by Leadiant Biosciences in the Netherlands. As a direct result of the Foundation’s research, legal action and media outreach, the case generated questions in the Dutch Parliament and substantial media response, both in the Netherlands and internationally.

The Foundation’s work has also supported at least one competition complaint in Europe. As a result, the Foundation is regularly asked for public comment on issues of high medicines prices (ex. VPRO hyperlink: https://youtu.be/48yuucSAFw8 , see below)

For the latest news, follow the Foundation on Twitter (@StichtingFtV).