It stinks of corruption. Former Health Minister on the monopoly of the Swedish company Molnlycke
Kyiv • UNN
The Swedish company Molnlycke Health Care has gained a monopoly on the market of dressings for patients with epidermolysis bullosa through corruption schemes and lobbying. The protocol approved by the Ministry of Health in 2016 has not yet been revised, despite the emergence of high-quality and cheaper analogues, which makes patients dependent on expensive products from one manufacturer.
In 2016, the Ministry of Health approved a protocol for the treatment of patients with epidermolysis bullosa, which recommended the use of dressings from only one manufacturer, the Swedish company Molnlycke Health Care, for wound treatment. This protocol has not been revised for 9 years, despite the emergence of high-quality and cheaper analogs on the market. In an exclusive commentary to UNN, former Health Minister Oleh Musiy expressed suspicion of a corruption component in this decision.
"This is because the working groups were formed for specific orders. The working groups of the Ministry of Health have a bad tradition. And when a specific manufacturer is indicated, it not only smells of corruption, but stinks of corruption, pardon the word. Everyone knows that only the chemical formula should be prescribed, not the manufacturer. As soon as a manufacturer is specified somewhere, it is clear that you are looking for the reason - lobbying for the private interests of a particular manufacturer," emphasized Oleg Musiy.
According to him, indicating a specific manufacturer in medical records is not a common practice. Musiy emphasized that the leadership of the Ministry of Health should ensure that no manufacturers are listed anywhere, because "this is a well-known scheme from 20 years ago, if not more.
The ex-minister emphasized that it is wrong for orphan patients to be held hostage by a single monopoly company. He added that it is especially dangerous because the Swedish dressings that force patients to use are expensive. Therefore, according to Musiy, there are questions to those who buy them and to the manufacturer who lobbies for their interests.
Recall
UNN launched an investigation to find out how the Swedish company Molnlycke Health Care, which specializes in the production of dressings, managed to create a monopoly in the Ukrainian market. After all, the manufacturer has secured absolute dominance in public tenders for the purchase of wound care products for patients with epidermolysis bullosa. For example, they are trying to prevent a Ukrainian manufacturer from entering the market that offers the same super-thin bandages, but at four times the price. A previous analysis revealed a possible conflict of interest in tender procurement through the public association headed by Tetiana Kulesha. In particular, there are reasonable suspicions that Molnlycke Health Care uses Kulesha to lobby for its own bandages.
